Climate Change and Nepal's status

As Conference of Parties (COP 21) is knocking the global door, we can see the commitments and reluctance as well of different parties for climate action. Nepal is one of the LDCs, as defined by the United Nations in terms of its low national income, less developed human capacity and a high degree of economic vulnerability (UNOHRLLS 2011). Nepal ratified the UNFCCC in 1994 and entered into force the same year. Nepal signed, ratified and entry into force of Kyoto Protocol in 2005. National Climate Change Policy, 2011 is only flagship legislation for changing climate till now. Nepal's contribution to global greenhouse gas emissions is negligible only at 32 Mt C0₂e in 2010, which is less than 0.1% of global emissions. With current policies, the emissions growth is projected to accelerate to 2.4% per year, on average, in the period 2010- 2030, reaching 52 MT CO₂e in 2030 (World Resources Institute). The majority of emissions in Nepal are non-CO2 greenhouse gas emissions from the agriculture sector. Methane and nitrous oxide contributed 70% to total greenhouse gas emissions in 2010, arising from rice cultivation, enteric fermentation and agricultural soils (USEPA 2012). Nepal is ranked as 4th most vulnerable countries to effect of climate change (Climate Change Vulnerability Index 2011).

Efforts in Nepal to fight climate change

Climate Change issue has been addressed to some extent by the 2001 Millennium Development Goals Initiatives and the 2003 Sustainable Development Agenda for Nepal. Interim constitution 2007 addressed climate change and provision of right of every citizen to food security and to live in a clean environment. An instable and volatile political circumstance has added a challenge to address climate change issues. Till date Nepal has not made any concrete commitments to reduce emissions. In 2010, National Adaptation Program of Action (NAPA) approved. NAPA developed as a requirement under the UNFCCC to access funding for the most urgent and immediate adaptation needs from the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF).

Nepal Climate Change Knowledge Management Center (NCCKMC) and Multi-sectoral Climate Change Initiatives Coordination Committee (MCCICC) were constituted by government in coordination with other related national institutions to facilitate in NAPA execution and ensure regular dialogue and consultations in the field of climate change. For effective implementation of NAPA, National Framework on Local Adaptation Plan for Action (LAPA) consisting of seven steps was formulated and piloted in 10 districts of Nepal in 2010. The four guiding principles of LAPA ensure the adaptation and resilience to climate change as bottom-up, inclusive, responsive and flexible in national and local planning.

In October 2009 Nepal became a member of UN REDD program. In July 2010, the REDD Readiness Preparation Proposal (R- PP) was assessed and a revised R-PP was then submitted to the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) of the World Bank in October 2010. REDD Cell is an executive body established in 2009 by Ministry of Forest and Soil Conservation (MoFSC) responsible for coordinating the REDD readiness process and other REDD projects in Nepal. The climate budget code was introduced by Government of Nepal in the annual budget of 2011/12 the budget code was integral part of the budget of fiscal year 2013/014. Climate change budget code is an innovation technique to track climate financing in national budget. According to ?Nepal Climate Change Budget Code Application Review 2013?, the allocated amount in 2012/13 and 2013/14 were 1.6% and 3.1% of GDP respectively.

One of the objectives of National Climate Change policy, 2011 was to formulate and implement LCEDS by 2014. Realizing and recognizing the immense potential of biogas, solar energy, wind energy, improved water mill, micro and mini hydropower, Nepal's Rural Energy Policy 2006 focused on the promotion of renewable energy use in Nepal.

Miles to Go ........

Nepal being member of UN REDD program has potential to generate benefits from forest restoration and reforestation. On the other hand, climate change issue doesn't seem to hold much importance to public as most of them aren't familiar with the term. Several organizations have been working for awareness and empowering the vulnerable yet still miles to go for united climate action. Moreover, Nepal is completely dependent on fossil fuel for transportation so investment in hybrid electric vehicles should be prioritized. Hopeful the promulgation of new constitution would prove to be a turning point in addressing climate change and empowering the susceptible community especially agricultural stakeholders.