DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES, DECEMBER 3, 2023 – Utilizing the international carbon market created under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement is crucial to driving investment in ambitious and transformational greenhouse gas-reducing projects. To make Article 6 implementation easier GGGI and its partners launched the SPAR6C Toolbox guides today at COP28. The SPAR6C Toolbox contains six guidebooks for a variety of stakeholders to operationalize their carbon market engagement. These tools serve as one of most comprehensive publicly available resources for governments and private sector working to implement Article 6. They are aimed at supporting developing countries to become better equipped to access carbon finance to catalyze investment in mitigation projects.
The toolbox has been designed as part of the GGGI-led Supporting Preparedness for Article 6 Cooperation (SPAR6C) program funded by German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BWMK) through the International Climate Initiative (IKI).
The first offering of the SPAR6C Toolbox is a collection of six guidebooks oriented towards a variety of stakeholders in host party/seller country governments who are key to operationalizing carbon market engagement. Fenella Aouane, Director of GGGI’s Carbon Pricing Unit noted, “As interest in Article 6 continues to grow in potential host countries, the SPAR6C Toolbox serves as an important resource for market players to skill up. Since the guides released cover a broad range of issues in-depth, they are a game-changer, providing a user-friendly resource to navigate the complexities of Article 6.”
GGGI is a global leader in supporting countries to make Article 6 implementation easier, including through SPAR6C, one of the world’s largest technical assistance programs. The 20 million Euro, 5-year program provides resourced for in-country support activities in four partner countries – Colombia, Pakistan, Thailand and Zambia – as well as global initiatives such as the Toolbox and the Community of Practice for Article 6 Implementing Countries (CoP-ASIC).
The SPAR6C program is implemented in partnership with a group of globally respected organizations, including Carbon Limits, UNEP Copenhagen Climate Centre (UNEP CCC), GFA Consulting, and Kommunalkredit Public Consulting. With this consortium, SPAR6C brings to the Toolbox more than 20 international experts in climate and carbon finance, including many who worked to build the carbon markets under the Kyoto Protocol. To develop the six guides available now, this international expertise was matched with a keen understanding of local needs from SPAR6C partner countries and others globally.
Randall Spalding-Fecher, Director at Carbon Limits and lead of the Toolbox Task Force in SPAR6C noted that “These guides are among the first to bridge the gap between Article 6 policy analysis, which is often highly technical, and the practical implementation of country strategies and new activities. For host countries, the guides provide a step-by-step approach to creating a robust strategy and institutional framework, so they can maximize the benefits and minimize the risks of Article 6 for their own climate and development priorities. For activity developers, the guides provide step-by step guidance on how to navigate the full activity cycle, particularly how it has changed compared to the CDM and the voluntary market. The guides accessibility and practicality can help countries and the private sector to kick start climate action with market mechanisms.”
The six initial guides have also received technical review and inputs from carbon market experts at the BMWK, and the Secretariat of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
“These guides are a testament to GGGI’s commitment to accelerating market activity under Article 6 and driving ambitious climate action,” said Frank Rijsberman, GGGI Director-General. “Our work in Article 6 and carbon pricing is at the cutting edge of the global effort to unlock carbon finance. It is a pleasure and a privilege to do what GGGI does best – share knowledge and experiences – from lessons learned in more than 12 countries and bring international best practice through the SPAR6C Toolbox guides. We hope that the guides released today will be a useful tool for countries to take practical steps toward the implementation of Article 6.”
Note to the Editor
The SPAR6C Toolbox aims to serve as a compass to navigate the complexities of Article 6 carbon market engagement. The first set of guides, currently available for download on the program’s web site (www.SPAR6C.org), have been carefully designed to address the needs of different audiences involved in the carbon market. Guide 1 provides a comprehensive introduction to two core concepts of the Paris Agreement: “transformational change” and “ambition”. Guides 2, 3, and 4 focus on providing valuable insights for host country governments on the topics of strategy, governance and the interplay of carbon pricing instruments. Finally, Guides 5 and 6 are aimed at mitigation activity developers, providing specialized and strategic advice on how to maximize their chances of success in designing and implementing emissions-reducing projects.
About the SPAR6C Program
The Supporting Preparedness for Article 6 Cooperation (SPAR6C [spark]) program is a five-year program funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK), through the German government’s International Climate Initiative (IKI). The program supports stakeholders in Colombia, Pakistan, Thailand, and Zambia to become prepared to engage in carbon transactions under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. For more information and to access the first set of SPAR6C Toolbox guides 2, 3, and 5, visit www.gggi.org and www.spar6c.org/toolboxa6
About the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI)
The Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) was founded as a treaty-based international, inter-governmental organization in 2012 at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development. GGGI supports its Member States in transitioning their economies toward a green growth model that simultaneously achieves poverty reduction, social inclusion, environmental sustainability, and economic growth. With 48 Member States and over 22 Partner countries and regional integration organizations in the process of accession, GGGI delivers programs and projects in over 40 countries. These initiatives encompass developing innovative green growth solutions, technical support, capacity building, policy planning & implementation, and assistance in building a pipeline of bankable green investment projects, project financing, investments, and knowledge sharing. GGGI’s work contributes to its Member States’ efforts to fulfill the Sustainable Development Goals and the Nationally Determined Contributions to the Paris Agreement.
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(SPAR6C Program Communications)
Marshall Brown, Global Program Manager
+82-10-9530-9985
(GGGI Seoul HQ)
Mona Laczo, Communications & Knowledge Sharing Unit Head
+82 10 9530 0358
mona.laczo@gggi.org
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