National Communication - Background Information

The United Nations Framework Conventions on Climate change was signed by the President at the UNCED Meeting, June 1992 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It was ratified on August 29, 1994 and entered into force on November 17, 1994.

Article 4 of the UNFCC obliges all parties to the Convention to make available, to the Conference of the parties (COP), national inventories of antropogenic emissions by sources and removals by sinks of all greenhouse gases not controlled by the Montreal Protocol. All Parties must formulate and implement programmed containing measures to mitigate climate change by addressing antropogenic emissions of the greenhouse gasses not controlled by the Montreal protocol.

Article 12 of the Convention obliges all parties to communicate to the COP, through the secretariat, a national inventory of antropogenic emissions by sources and removals by sinks of all greenhouse gases not controlled by the Montreal Protocol. This must be done to the extent its capacities permit, using comparable methodologies to be promoted and agreed upon by the COP.

Article 4.3 further obliges developed country Parties to provide financial resources to meet the agreed full costs incurred by developing country Parties in complying with their obligations under Article 12.

A Project Document - GUY/97/G31/A/IG/99 titled "Enabling Guyana to Prepare its First National Communication in Response to its Commitments to the UNFCCC" was signed on June 5th 1998 between the Government of Guyana and the UNDP in order to provide funds for Guyana to comply with Articles 4 and 12 of the UNFCCC. GEF will fund the Project with a cash contribution of US$196,730.00. The Project has the following components:

  • An inventory of greenhouse gases following the guidelines adopted by the COP as Decision10 /CP.2;
  • An assessment of potential impacts of climate change in Guyana;
  • An analysis of potential measures to abate the increase in greenhouse gas emissions and to adapt to climate change;
  • Preparation of a national action plan to address climate and its adverse impacts; and
  • Preparation of the first national communication of Guyana to the COP.

    Guyana's initial communication becomes due within three years of the availability of financial resources in accordance with Article 4, paragraph 3 of the Convention. That is, Guyana has until 4th June 2001 to submit its initial communication. It is hoped that Guyana will comply with this commitment in September 2000.

    The communication will have the following chapters:

  • National Circumstances - state of the economy and socio-economic statistics
  • Inventory of greenhouse gases
  • Vulnerability Analysis
  • Mitigation Analysis