Unlocking progress: cross-sectoral coordination to support REDD+ and sustainable energy access

1. Unlocking progress: cross-sectoral coordination to support REDD+ and sustainable energy access Emily Brickell, Senior Research Officer Improving energy access through climate finance: picking the winners University of Twente, 26th March 2013

2. Overview • Focus on case study on Uganda and drawing on previous ODI research on REDD+ and energy • Relationship between forests and energy in Uganda • Trade-offs and synergies • Cross-sectoral coordination • Challenges • Potential influence of REDD+ • Implications for the conference questions

3. Unlocking progress on REDD+: sector coordination in Uganda • Sector coordination in Uganda • Cross-sectoral • Vertical • Political economy analysis • Challenges to sector coordination • Paper is framed from a ‘REDD+ perspective’ • Here, consider implications for both REDD+ and energy

4. Forests and energy in Uganda • >90% households rely on woodfuel for energy • 2% deforestation per year • RPP lists woodfuel as the main driver of deforestation in northern and eastern Uganda • Deforestation is increasing poverty • e.g. higher woodfuel costs

5. Trade-offs and synergies • Potential trade-offs • If woodfuel continues to drive deforestation, will hamper REDD+ efforts • If REDD+ restricts access to forests or target woodfuel use without addressing energy need, will affect energy access • Opportunities for synergies • Deforestation affecting both REDD+ and energy access • Certain policies and measures could contribute to both secure energy access and REDD+ • sustainable management of woodfuelresources • improving energy efficiency • establish plantations • alternative energy sources • Promoting synergies relies on cross-sectoral coordination

6. Cross-sectoral coordination in Uganda Efforts made but, to date, not fully effective

7. Challenges to cross-sectoral coordination • Policy conflicts and gaps exist • Regulation of woodfuel and charcoal is “inadequate and unclear” • Multiple institutions regulating the same resource • Confusing and prone to abuse by both producers and government officials • Various coordination mechanisms but challenges remain • Formal responsibility but lack resources or power to exercise

8. Underlying challenge: low priority • Competing interests in the national government • Government policy promotes fast economic growth and rural transformation • Forests and environment are low priority • Few perceived interests • Inadequate funding for forests and environment sector • Undervalue contributing of forests to development and economy • Often in the informal and non-cash economy • FAO study • Fuelwood accounts for 40% of the local economy • Non-cash component 3 times the value of the cash component • Infrastructure development, including energy, is a key area in 2012/13 national budget • Main focus on oil and hydro, often for export (informally) • Few incentives to • Strengthen cross-sector coordination • Address deforestation and implications for energy access and REDD+

9. How might REDD+ influence cross-sectoral coordination? • RPP recognises the need to address cross-sectoral coordination • Establishes coordination structures including energy ministry • Too early to assess effectiveness • Risk of further complicating policy space? • Potential for policy conflicts highlighted • But RPP does not review energy policies • Identify potential measures relating to energy • e.g. regulating charcoal production and trade, enforcement, energy efficiency, woodfuel production • A potential opportunity for ring-fenced budgets? • To help address capacity gap

10. Further research areas • Analyse informal rules and incentives affecting cross-sectoral coordination • Role of non-state actors in influencing incentives • Better understanding of the role of forests for energy (and other development priorities) • Explore policy options that result in trade-offs and synergies

11. Implications for the questions • Are REDD+ programmes likely to lead to increases in energy access? • Will restrictions on forest use simply make access to sources of traditional energy and other ecosystem services more difficult? • In the case of Uganda, potential trade-offs and synergies • Depends on policies and measures implemented • REDD+ could provide a potential incentive to support energy access • Will need to contribute to energy access priorities • Needs to be an explicit effort to balance objectives and minimise trade-offs • REDD+ needs to not just be in the hands of environment and forests ministries • Strengthen cross-sectoral coordination • Need to overcome political and technical barriers • Balance different objectives, interests and cultures • Political and financial support and incentives offered by REDD+ provide a potential opportunity • A forgotten issue? • Low priority could undermine both objectives

12. Thank you Emily Brickell e.brickell@odi.org.uk Overseas Development Institute 203 Blackfriars Road, London, SE1 8NJ T: +44 207 9220 300 www.odi.org.uk