Initiative for Climate Action Transparency (ICAT)
The "Initiative for Climate Action Transparency" (ICAT) project, born under the Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement, is a voluntary multilateral initiative that aims to support developing countries to adopt policies and measures for mitigation and adaptation to climate change in line with the commitments established in the Paris Agreement.
Funds from donor bodies, including the Italian and German Ministry of the Environment, and the Children's Investment Fund and ClimateWorks foundations, are transferred and managed by UNOPS (United Nations Office for Project Services) which redistributes them to the various agencies. that implement the shared activities of the project ('implementing agencies').
Through guidelines, training activities and knowledge sharing, the project aims to encourage emerging countries to adopt common methodologies to support monitoring, measurement and evaluation systems of greenhouse gas emissions produced by economic and social activities.
ISPRA, responsible in Italy for reporting and accounting for greenhouse gas absorptions and emissions under the UNFCCC and Kyoto Protocol, was selected as the implementation agency and has been an integral part of the project since September 2018. Together with UNEP - DTU, co-partner in the activities, ISPRA will transfer the experience acquired over the years, carrying out training activities aimed at officials and the main stakeholders of the beneficiary countries, in particular ministries and agencies responsible for communicating data in the field UNFCCC and ministries and bodies responsible for the implementation of policies and measures and actions to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. The 12 countries identified are: Sudan, Ethiopia, China, Maldives, Vietnam, Argentina, Botswana, Belize, Bahamas, Belarus, Tunisia, Iran.
The training activities will focus on the methodologies to be applied for the estimation of emissions within the national inventory of greenhouse gases, on the planning, evaluation and reporting of mitigation policies and measures, for the different sectors, and on the evaluation of institutional agreements. and regulatory framework necessary to ensure compliance with disclosure obligations under the Paris Agreement.
The fundamental point of the project is the direct participation and involvement of the stakeholders of each country who will have to adopt the guidelines, developed during the first phase of the project and which are based on existing experiences and designed to be compatible and adaptable to the different commitments undertaken by the countries. The ultimate goal will be to improve the accessibility and quality of data and allow countries to promote efficient and cost-effective policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and promote sustainable development.
Contacts: icat@isprambiente.it