US Country Studies Program: an example of bilateral assistance to developing countries on climate change

Under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) developing and transition countries are eventually required to report greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions inventories and response (mitigation) options. The United States (US) and other donors are providing financial and technical support for climate change country studies to help meet their needs under the UNFCCC. The US Country Studies Program (US CSP) was originally announced by President Bush at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in Brazil in 1992. The Program is currently assisting 56 country studies to address climate change. There are strong components of ocean and coastal assessment, adaptation and management in 41 of the 56 studies in the US CSP. All studies in the Program are implemented under respective bilateral cooperative agreements. Technical assistance for conducting GHG inventory, climate change impact vulnerability studies, and adaptation and mitigation assessments includes training of analysts, sharing of contemporary tools and assessment techniques, implementation of information-sharing workshops, and an exchange program for analysts. Emphases have been put on strengthening of human and institutional capacity to cope with global climate change issues, hence providing developing and transition countries with a sustained basis for meeting the goals of the UNFCCC.