Strategy for the Development of a Climate Change Abatement Economy
As UN Secretary General calls for an escalation of ambitions to provide scalable solutions to climate change threats, Sierra Leone proposes an "Apex System" that utilises her biodiversity and ecosystems services to deliver her mandates to the Paris Agreement.
Forest carbon credits otherwise known as REDD+ are the foundation of the strategy and main tool with which the climate change abatement, or low carbon, economy will be accomplished. This may require setting up a fully functional anti-deforestation task force that must vigorously work to control illegal logging and other drivers of deforestation and degradation to achieve sustainable outcomes in the management of land and biodiversity conservation. This could also include any on-going bans on timber logging and export.
Sierra Leone having reached a turning point in the management of her forest and biodiversity resources envisages a vision of transformative development that harnesses the country’s forest and other biodiversity resources in a sustainable climate change abatement manner and proposes the establishment of permanent institutional, business, legal and policy frameworks – the National Climate Change Secretariat (NCCS) or National Secretariat for Climate Change (NSCC) - for the realization of a vision to have the following: 2.5 million hectares of forest lands developed and managed, within the next 10 years, for climate change abatement activities including carbon, non-timber forest products, sustainable tree crops and ecotourism; a wide spread practice of Participatory Forest Management (PFM) in all forested districts or communities; a Forest Industries Corporation (FIC) and an Anti-deforestation Task Force of over 2000 foresters, including rangers and community forest workers; and, to generate a revenue of more than US$ 100 m per annum while sequestering a huge sum of emissions to help in addressing climate change threats.
Project
Actions will be geared towards three major strategic goals.
Strategic Goal 1: Engage national government institutions in preparing a national institutional and legal framework for REDD+ and PES implementation by:
1. Conducting a national legal and institutional review for REDD+ initiatives.
2. Catalysing national level engagement on the implementation of REDD+ (e.g. holding a national Carbon workshop in Sierra Leone and engaging stakeholders at all levels - local, sub-national and national - of the community to raise awareness and take ownership of the initiative).
3. Conducting and completing a REDD+ readiness process with the relevant international institutions (WB, UNFCCC, UNDP, FAO, etc.) and
4. Achieving consensuses on climate change strategies among forested districts of Sierra Leone and communicating them to the national REDD+ process and international community.
Strategic Goal 2: Ensure national level institutional and legal environment is welcoming and prepared to handle nationwide REDD+ and other PES initiatives by:
1. Assessing drivers of deforestation and degradation and agreeing on response strategies (e.g. establishment of a fully functional anti-deforestation task force, forest cover mapping, carbon stocktaking and forest reference level teams, PES management team etc.).
2. Conducting and completing a fully comprehensive national forest cover and carbon mapping exercise.
3. Identifying and putting in place the requisite institutional structures for REDD+ and PES projects within the Apex System.
4. Passing legislation for REDD+ and PES at the national level.
5. Studying the non-timber forest product gaps at the national level and completing a sustainable development strategy.
6. Completing a national level ecotourism review and community based environmental development plan.
7. Outlining a viable benefit sharing mechanism, at the national level, to ensure adequate returns to rural communities, government and other stakeholders.
8. Conducting a nationwide campaign on climate Change and Carbon Credits Trading.
9. Engaging with potential buyers of generated Carbon Credits and private sector brokers.
10. Developing a financing plan.
Strategic Goal 3: Develop at least three integrated REDD+/PES pilot projects for early learning by:
1. Conducting projects at 3 to 5 pilot sites (a feasibility study has already been conducted for the Bumbuna Watershed Protection REDD+ project).
2. Identifying potential baseline and methodological approaches for each pilot site.
3. Defining boundaries for each pilot site; and
4. Reviewing and structuring the institutional arrangements at each pilot site.
What are the next critical steps for Sierra Leone?
Given UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres' call for an escalation of ambitions on climate action by September 2019 plus the latest decision of the Parties to the Convention in the Bonn Climate Conference, on 27th June 2019, for all members to deliver on their Paris Agreement mandates, the following is a list of critical steps for Sierra Leone:
1. Revision and broad endorsement of the concept proposal
2. Preparation of the REDD+ Preparedness Plan (R-PP), including application for membership of the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility, which Sierra Leone has not taken advantage of since 2008 when the World bank advised and invited the government to do so as a LDC.
3. Holding high level discussions with key players in Freetown, including Ministries of Environment, Lands, Housing and Country Planning, Agriculture, Forestry and Food Security, Energy and Water Resources, Finance and Economic Development, Trade and Industry, Local Government, Information and Communication, Justice (Attorney General's Office), Transport and Aviation, Tourism, Environmental Protection Agency, National Revenues Authority, National Climate Change Unit, Sierra Leone Police/Inspector General, Steering Committee on Climate Change - House of Parliament (if any), Secretary to the President or Cabinet of the government and representatives of Sierra Leone's development partners (EU, FAO, UNDP. UNIDO, World Bank, etc.).
4. Meeting with Council Chairmen and Paramount Chiefs of forested districts to develop a common position on the strategy for climate change abatement economy (according to a COP15 decision on REDD+).
5. Preparation and presentation of the relevant papers (Green, White and Cabinet) on REDD+ to the President, Cabinet and/or Parliament of Sierra Leone.
6. Engagement of nationwide stakeholders to ensure broad endorsement and buy-in of the concept.
7. Enactment of legislation for the establishment of the Apex System - National Secretariat for Climate Change, including the national registry for REDD+ and non-REDD Carbon).
8. Establishment of the National Secretariat for Climate Change, or re-structuring and improvement of existing units by increasing capacity to deliver the terms of Apex System (AS).
9. Expansion of the concept into full proposal.
10. Inclusion of the Strategy to the National Adaptation Plan of Action (NAPA) of Sierra Leone for LDCF funding.
11. Secure financial resources to begin implementation.
12. National implementation of the programme in all of the identified and agreed pilot sites.
13. Implementation of short and long-term cost-effective participatory ecosystem or forest management practices (PEMP or PFMP), including the protection of watershed areas, by the anti-deforestation task force and other PES management teams in all identified pilot sites nation-wide.
The above listed critical steps are indeed mainly linked to political decision makers and their MDAs. Therefore, a robust change theory embarking them and their interests is reqiured to show how they could be fully engaged in the implementation of the strategy.
The diagram in the hyperlink is a robust analysis of the change theory involving the engagement of policy makers and MDAs in the implementation of the national REDD+ Strategy. It shows outcome mapping at the level of policy makers and MDAs in the implementation of the REDD+ strategy in Sierra Leone.
The following hyperlink provides a self-explanation of the process:
Latest Developments:
1. The President of Sierra Leone has authorized the appointment of a coordinator for the REDD+ Strategy to be conducted by 6th September, 2019 according the MAF whose Minister appointed a special focal point (his technical adviser) to liaise with me recently. The MLHE was the first ministry to appoint a focal point from the Environment Department to liaise me in June 2019.
2. The MLHE has added the REDD+ Strategy project to the NAPA and INDC of SL to take advantage of adaptation funding provided by UNFCCC modalities. This is to meet with the additional cost (US $ 23.6 million) posed by the establishment of the Anti-deforestation Task Force in the revised extended budget of this proposal.
3. A Cabinet paper to effect the appointment of the coordinator and adoption of the proposal by the GoSL is currently being prepared by the MLHE and MAF.
4. Round table meetings with the Ministers and some of the senior executives of the three leading ministries were held with Agrienviron in April and May 2019. These engagements ended in the signing of a memorandum of understanding between Agrienviron and the MLHE.
5. In August 2018 a sensitization meeting was held with the Minister of the MLHE following a reconnaissance survey (by Agrienviron) of the Bumbuna Watershed catchment and the Western Area Peninsula Forest Reserves in SL.
6. List of stakeholders: GoSL, including all MDAs; International development partners (FAO/UNREDD+, UNDP, UNEP, UNIDO, GCF, GEF, WB, EU, UNFCCC, LDCF); District Councils, Paramount Chiefs and their Regents, Forest/Land Owners, Community Forest Dwellers, CSOs, INGOs, NGOs and the People of Sierra Leone.
7. Awareness of REDD+ Strategy: The GoSL and her international development partners are fully aware of REDD+ albeit poor poorly implemented in Sierra Leone due to corruption. Stakeholder engagements in the form of roundtables and national workshops were conducted in 2010/2011 when I initiated the process as Technical Adviser to the MAFFS and MoEW. FAO and UNDP sponsored some of the activities. The UNDP has since 2010 published a copy of the original CN of the strategy on their adaptation webpages found here: https://www.adaptation-undp.org/resources/naps-least-developed-countries-ldcs/sierra-leones-strategy-development-climate-change
8. The strategy initiated by us and the NCRC Ghana on a regional approach towards the implementation of REDD+ in West Africa (Ghana Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone) has, in July 2019, yielded a breakthrough result for Ghana with the signing of a US $ 50 million ERPA with the FCPF of the WB.
9. Please see the news here: https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2019/07/09/ghana-signs-landmark-deal-with-world-bank-to-cut-carbon-emissions-and-reduce-deforestation
10. So yes, this project is ambitious as mentioned in the evaluation but it is also very "SMART" and Ghana's ERPA is the evidence and hope for Sierra Leone, which has a much higher forest cover and lower deforestation rate than Ghana. This proposal is not only specific, it is also manageable, achievable, realistic and time bound.
Project Governance:
The projects of AS must propose and implement an institutional governance structure based on the creation of a community natural resource management board that would be responsible for managing the project funds and project decision-making like: approval of the “project management plan”; definition of the annual plan of activities and funds application; strategy for benefits sharing, etc. The organizational structure is community-based and involves a highly inclusive and maximum participation model.
One critical issue that the projects of the AS will have to address is how to share the carbon benefits/revenues that would be generated by the project. It is particularly important to clarify land tenure issues of the projects in regards to the traditional chiefs (who in some cases are the custodians of the land). It is critical to define the implementation strategy and the project governance prior to the project implementation, including a clear agreement with the main stakeholders.
All of these issues, though apparently semantic, may significantly impact on the viability of the AS and its projects over time.
Who will serve as Coordinator?
- A separate and very competent authority in REDD+ matters will serve this role. It will not be the National Secretariat, which needs to be set up under the supervision of the Coordinator - who will also be the REDD+ DNA or REDD+ FP until the NSCC is fully and functionally established.
Pursuant to decisions of the UNFCCC on the implementation of REDD+ projects in Rainforest Nations, key actors will be:
1. Leading MDAs of the government outlined above: to raise awareness and mobilize government's resources and action on the proposal; initiate and coordinate stakeholder engagements; promulgate legislation and incorporate the institutional framework of the AS, empower and provide supreme supervision through an executive committee of all allied MDAs.
2. The National Secretariat for Climate Change: will be a permanent National Secretariat in the Office of the President. It will be chaired by a suitably qualified and competent expert and will answer to the President or his designated representative and the Cabinet. She/he will also answer to the Climate Change Committee of the House of Parliament, when required to do so; and, will advice the President and his government on Climate Change related matters.
The Secretariat will be composed of a compact team that can grow over time. The Secretariat will be advised and guided by a Climate Change and `Forest and non-Forest Carbon technical working committee with the following composition:
· Sierra Leone Government agencies, including SLEPA – 5 reps; Academia and Research Institutions – 4 reps; Civil society groups – 4 reps; Community forestry groups – 2 reps; Private sector – 2 reps.
The suggested representatives of each group include:
· Government agencies: Forestry Division/Agriculture, Environment/SLEPA, Finance, Local Government, Trade and Industry, Tourism, Transport and Aviation.
· Academia and Research Institutions: University of Sierra Leone, Institutions of higher education in forested areas, SLARI, Climate Change Unit, etc.
· Civil society organizations: Relevant NGOs/INGOs, Voluntary Organizations, etc.
· Community entities represented could include: representatives (preferably PCs and/or Council Chairmen) from forested areas.
· Private sector entities should be included as they demonstrate significant engagement with the process.
Key components of the NSCC:
· Executive board;
· Technical board;
· National Registry for REDD and non-REDD Carbon;
· The Designated National Authority (DNA); and,
· Technical Unit for Climate Change, Monitoring Review and Validation (MRV), Research & Development (R&D) and consultancy. A full organizational structure of the NSCC is available for submission upon request or will be included in at the CN or full proposal stage.
Key functions of the NSCC:
· Provision of guidance, direction and regulation on Climate Change (CC) and Carbon Trading (CT) issues in Sierra Leone;
· Registration of all carbon trading projects and transactions in Sierra Leone, inter-alia.
3. Anti-deforestation task force: comprising of 2000 personnel to implement PFMP.
The actions of this proposal will primarily be taken nation-wide, at all of the three stakeholder levels (local/site, sub-national/district and national) of the envisioned forest cover of 2.5 million ha to be utilised under the programme but most especially in the forested districts and watershed areas where projects will be piloted.
Administrative and technical actions will also be taken in the headquarters of the National Secretariat for Climate Change in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Furthermore, communities at all three levels will be targeted and mobilized to increase resilience to climate change threats, including deforestation, land and/or ecosystem or biodiversity degradation in and out of the envisioned forested area of the national REDD+ programme. However, priority will be given to villages, towns and/or districts hosting pilot projects of the AS.
The country's international development partners will play a supportive role in providing appropriate and timely technical and financial support, when required, through their country directorates, diplomatic missions in Freetown and other viable agency channels.
Government actions at the MDA and Parliamentary levels will be in the various settings of these institutions in Freetown, Sierra Leone, although devolved action could also be encountered in the forested districts.
The current GOSL has been successfully influenced by Agrienviron's recent campaign on Climate Change and Biodiversity Conservation in Sierra Leone and they are now in the process of adopting the REDD+ strategy, having realised the benefits therein. In adopting the strategy - a process that is currently on-going, the GOSL has also agreed to incorporate public feedback through participatory stakeholder engagements (workshops, awareness raising campaigns, meetings, etc.) to develop new actions in the national strategy.
This action of the GOSL therefore signifies the adoption of the action to achieve the strategic goals enshrined in the national strategy - Emissions Reduction to abate climate change, establishment of the Apex System, payments for ecosystems services, and generation of a high national income in excess of US $ 100 million per annum.