New Horizons February 2018 | Page 23

21

According to the decisions taken during 17th Conference of Parties (COP 17) meetings which were held in Durban, in 2011, Annex I countries to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) are requested to submit their Biennial Reports (BRs) to the UNFCCC Secretariat every two years. Annex I countries include the industrialized countries that were members of the OECD in 1992, plus countries with economies in transition (the EIT Parties), including the Russian Federation, the Baltic States, several Central and Eastern European States.

Biennial Reports outline Annex I countries' progress in achieving Greenhouse Gas emission reductions and the provision of financial, technology, and capacity-building support to non-Annex I countries. The first and second Biennial Reports of Annex I countries have been submitted in January 2014 and 2016 respectively. As an Annex I Party to UNFCCC, Turkey submitted its Joint First & Second Biennial Report in 2016. In January 2018, Turkey’s Third Biennial Report (3rd BR) to the UNFCCC through has been submitted by the Ministry of Environment and Urbanization as the National Focal Point for Turkey.

The Report gives an update of Turkey’s GHG emission inventory according to the requirements of UNFCCC, while providing imrovements compared to the Joint First & Second Biennial Report based on its Technical Review Report. Both Joint First & Second and Third Biennial Reports have been prepared and submitted with technical assistance from UNDP Turkey Country Office.

“Support for the Preparation of Turkey's Seventh National Communication (7th NC) and Third Biennial Report (3rd BR) UNFCCC” Project has been operated in cooperation with the UNDP Turkey Country Office and the Ministry of Environment and Urbanization (MoEU) and co-financed by Global Environment Fund (GEF) and Turkish Government.