Reproduced, with permission, from:

ANNEX I

LEGAL AND INSTITUTIONAL MECHANISMS

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

1) The coordinators' report has as its primary objective the compilation of elements that might be included in a future framework Convention on Climate Change, and a discussion of the issues that are likely to arise in the context of developing those elements.

2) There is a general view that while existing legal instruments and institutions with a bearing on climate should be fully utilized and further strengthened, they are insufficient alone to meet the challenge. A very broad international consensus has therefore emerged in the IPCC, confirmed notably at the 44th United Nations General Assembly, on the need for a framework Convention on Climate Change. Such a Convention should generally follow the format of the Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer, in laying down, as a minimum, general principles and obligations. It should further be framed in such a way as to gain the adherence of the largest possible number and most suitably balanced spread of countries while permitting timely action to be taken; it should contain provision for separate annexes/protocols to deal with specific obligations. As part of the commitment of the parties to action on greenhouse gas emissions and the adverse effects of global warming, the Convention would also address the particular financial needs of the developing countries, the question of the access to and transfer of technology, and institutional requirements.

3) The paper points out a number of issues to be decided in the negotiation of a Convention. In general these are:

* the political imperative of striking the correct balances: on the one hand, between the arguments for a far-reaching, action-oriented Convention and the need for urgent adoption of such a Convention so as to begin tackling the problem of climate change; and, on the other hand, between the cost of inaction and the lack of scientific certainty;

* the extent to which specific obligations, particularly on the control of emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, should be included in the Convention itself or be the subject of separate protocol(s):

* the timing of negotiations of such protocol(s) in relation to the negotiations on the Convention .

4) In particular, within the Convention the following specific issues will need to be addressed:

(a) Financial needs of developing countries. The need for additional resources for developing countries and the manner in which this should be addressed, particularly in terms of the nature, size, and conditions of the funding, even if detailed arrangements form the subject of a separate protocol, will have to be considered by the negotiating parties.

(b) Development and transfer of technology. The basis on which the promotion of the development and transfer of technology and provision of technical assistance to developing countries should take place will need to be elaborated, taking into account considerations such as terms of transfer, assured access, intellectual property rights, and the environmental soundness of such technology.

(c) Institutions. Views differ substantially on the role and powers of the institutions to be created by the Convention, particularly in exercising supervision and control over the obligations undertaken.

5) The inclusion of any particular element in the paper does not imply consensus with respect to that element, or the agreement of any particular government to include that element in a Convention.

6) The coordinators have not sought to make a value judgment in listing and summarizing in the attached paper the elements proposed for inclusion in a framework Convention: their text seeks merely to assist the future negotiators in their task. They note, however, that a readiness to address the foregoing fundamental problems in a realistic manner will be a prerequisite for ensuring the success of the negotiations and the support of a sufficiently wide and representative spread of nations.