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How-to Guide: National Institutional Frameworks for the Kyoto Protocol Flexible Mechanisms in Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States
Text Box 3-8 Examples of DNA Legalization
The process of legalizing the DNA will depend on the individual government system of the host Party (i.e., presidential, semi-presidential or parliamentarian) and the institutional procedures for establishing a new government body or granting approval authority to an independent entity. Legal documents that have been used in the past include presidential and ministerial decrees, new laws, amendments to existing laws, or a government act or order. The following country examples illustrate the processes that could be used to establish a DNA: – Georgia uses a semi-presidential government system, which means that the President and the cabinet have authority to create new government functions without directly involving the parliament. Thus, policy makers in Georgia have determined that a government decree would be the best and quickest option for establishing the DNA instead of going through the parliament to pass a new or amended law. In January 2005, a Decree of the Cabinet of Ministers was passed which appointed the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources as the DNA. In September 2005, the National Board on the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) was established by Government Decree No172. A procedure for the National Board was then approved by the Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources who is also the Chair of the Board. The National Board makes recommendations to the Government (PrimeMinister) regarding whether or not a project should be approved while the Administration of Hydrometeorology and Climate Change of the Ministry of Environment serves as the DNA Secretariat. The government is considering a proposal for DNA approval procedures and sustainable development criteria. An Annex is attached with the proposed PIN template, sustainable development criteria, and the process for evaluating these. – The Republic of Macedonia has yet to establish a DNA. However, a recent UNDP study found that in order to establish such an entity, a new or amended law would have to be passed by the parliament because Macedonia uses a parliamentary system whereby all major government functions have to be initiated by the assembly. In addition to passing a law, the ministerial by-laws of the individual ministry hosting the DNA Secretariat would have to be amended to add the required staff and describe their functions and qualifications. – Kyrgyzstan, which has a presidential system, issued a Decree in July of 2005 authorizing the inter-ministerial National Climate Change Committee as the DNA and the Ministry of Ecology and Emergency’s (MEE) National Climate Change Centre as its implementing organ. It also tasked the Deputy Minister of MEE with supervising the implementation of the Decree. In addition, the MEE passed a Statute establishing the National Climate Change Centre as a nongovernmental body and authorizing it to support the DNA as well as other climate change activities in the country.