Asia FCPF CSO Observer Selection Process

Nominations are sought from candidate organisations meeting the following criteria and CSO representatives must be committed to fulfill the following responsibilities:

1. Civil Society Organization (CSO) observers to the FCPF will be established, not-for-profit non-governmental organizations (NGOs) with verifiable knowledge and understanding of the purpose, functions, and operations of the FCPF.  Eligible NGOs include think tanks, advocacy groups, community-based organizations, and aid organizations. Individuals not affiliated with an organization and academic institutions will not be considered eligible for the purposes of this selection process.
2. Observer organizations should have membership in, or subscribe to information from, at least one networking organization (i.e. an alliance organization that provides services to similarly focused NGOs) that is engaged on REDD+ and FCPF issues at the local, national, and/or international level.
3. Candidate organizations will be asked to demonstrate their capacity to establish links with groups and networks outside of their home country, including grassroots-level and community-based organizations.
4. Observer organizations should demonstrate an understanding of REDD+ policy and issues.
5. In order to avoid conflicts of interest, observer organizations must disclose the scope of their organization’s funding with the multilateral development banks, export credit agencies, and governments in areas relevant to FCPF activities and programming and agree to declare any potential conflict of interest that may arise during its tenure as Observer.
6. Individuals that are nominated for Observer positions should agree to act in an ethical manner during the selection process, which includes, inter alia, refraining from any attempts to interfere with the voting process by registering organizations to vote that are not involved in REDD+/forest issues or creating new organizations for the sake of getting more votes, to collude with or trade votes with other candidates, or to seek to tell any member of their constituency how they should vote.
7. Individuals representing civil society observer organizations must demonstrate the capacity to communicate and negotiate effectively and the willingness and ability to interact actively via the internet and telephone with FCPF participants and their constituencies.
8. Individuals representing observer organizations must demonstrate their commitment to open and transparent communication with any interested stakeholders in the FCPF process.
9. Individuals representing observer organizations must be willing and committed to representing the concerns and interests of their constituents/regions – not only members of their own organizations, but also the larger community to whom they are accountable.  They also must be able to report back to those constituents/regions on FCPF activities and programming.
10. Individuals representing observer organizations should be able to demonstrate the ability to actively participate in FCPF meetings, which will likely require reading, understanding, and speaking English fluently or semi-fluently.  Individuals representing regions should be able to demonstrate the ability to communicate in one or more of the main regional languages (e.g. French, Spanish, etc.)
11. Each observer organization will be expected to appoint one primary representative who will attend FCPF meetings, and one alternate who can prepare for, travel to, and actively participate in FCPF meetings in the event the primary representative is unable to attend.
12. Observers will be subject to recall if at least five organizations in the constituency in explain in writing their reasons for dissatisfaction with the current observer request a new (interim) selection process.
13. Observers are eligible to serve two (2) consecutive terms of two (2) years maximum.
14. It is good practice for Observers to: disseminate FCPF and REDD related documents of interest; circulate information regarding upcoming meetings of the FCPF beforehand noting items of potential interest, gather views of constituents on issues included in the agenda, especially views from civil society in countries whose readiness process will be discussed; and provide a report back regarding what happened at FCPF meetings afterwards.

Terms and FCPF Meeting Dates 

Observer organizations will serve a two-year term, beginning January 2015.  Individuals representing observer organizations will be expected to attend two FCPF Participant Committee meetings in 2015 and two PC meetings in 2016.  One southern Observer will also be responsible for attending at three FCPF Carbon Fund meetings in 2015 and three CF meeting in 2016. They also may be expected to participate in occasional teleconferences, working groups, and other “virtual” meetings.

VOTING AND NOMINEE ELIGIBILITY

Organisations with voting privileges should:

• Be established CSOs, community-based organisations, non-profit organisations and/or non-governmental organisations;
• Be based in a partner country of the UN-REDD Programme and/or FCPF
• Be actively involved in issues relating to forests as well as community rights/development, and/or women’s rights/development, and/or natural resource management/biodiversity conservation, and/or climate change/REDD+; and
• Submit an application to vote before the advertised deadline.

Eligibility criteria for organisations intending to stand for self-selection:

• For the Asia-Pacific region only organisations that are based in FCPF partner countries are eligible to stand for self-selection as the regional representatives for FCPF
• Eligible organisations that have a regional identity that includes work in partner countries of the FCPF respectively will also be permitted to stand for self-selection; and
• A regional CSO network may nominate a single member organization to represent on behalf of the network.

Restrictions on eligibility to vote OR stand for self-selection:

• Academic institutions, private foundations, government affiliated institutions, and discrete projects/activities/programmes/initiatives managed by civil society organisations will NOT be eligible to join the registry;
• For large, multi-national CSOs, country affiliates may join as part of the Regional Registry listservs (see section below on Regional CSO Registries for more information) but nomination and voting privileges will only be afforded to one focal point per organisation per region; and
• For regional and national networks or coalitions, composite CSOs forming these networks/coalitions have the right to join the Regional Registries as separate entities and therefore are entitled to independent nomination and voting privileges.

Notes on the voting process:

• Organisations applying for the voting process should indicate focal point/s who will be placed on a regional listserv and will be able to vote on behalf of the organisation;
• Only ONE vote will be permitted per organisation;
• Selection of regional representatives will be based on:

1. Total number of votes – the organisation with the most votes will be invited to serve as regional CSO representative, as long as regional reach is demonstrated through the votes received (see point b. below);
2. Regional reach as determined by origination of votes – in addition to receiving the most votes, the regional balance in origination of the votes will be taken into consideration, therefore nominee CSOs that attract significant proportions (e.g., 25-40%) of votes originating from CSOs in the region based in partner countries other than the country of the nominated CSO will be considered favourably, as this demonstrates that the CSO has support from organisations at a regional level.

FCPF REDD countries for Asia are:  Indonesia, Cambodia, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Nepal, Papua New Guinea, Thailand, Vanuatu, and Vietnam

See Timeline and Voting Rules document for more information.

Revisions to Voting Rules & TOR for the Observer:

• Added to Observer criteria: “Individuals that are nominated for Observer positions should agree to act in an ethical manner during the selection process, which includes, inter alia, refraining from any attempts to interfere with the voting process by registering organizations to vote that are not involved in REDD+/forest issues or creating new organizations for the sake of getting more votes, to collude with or trade votes with other candidates, or to seek to tell any member of their constituency how they should vote.”

The Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) assists tropical and subtropical forest countries develop the systems and policies for REDD+.  The FCPF has created a framework and processes for REDD+ readiness, which helps countries get ready for future systems of financial incentives for REDD+.  Using this framework, each participating country develops an understanding of what it means to become ready for REDD+, in particular by developing reference scenarios, adopting REDD+ strategy, designing monitoring systems and setting up REDD+ national management arrangements, in ways that are inclusive of the key national stakeholders.

The World Bank acts as a trustee for the Readiness Fund and the Carbon Fund, provides secretariat services, and delivery partner for the FCPF, providing technical support to the REDD Country Participants and conducting due diligence on matter such as fiduciary policies and environmental and social safeguards.  The Inter-American Development Bank and United Nations Development Program joined the World Bank as delivery partners for the FCPF.

Forty four REDD countries have been selected in partnership.  The World Bank is conducting due diligence on REDD Readiness Preparation Proposals with a view to entering into readiness grant agreements of up to $3.8 million to assist these countries conduct the preparatory work they have proposed.

The FCPF governance structure includes a 28-member Participants Committee elected by the REDD Country Participants and the financial contributors and six official Observers, one each representing forest-dependent indigenous peoples and other forest dwellers, NGOs, international organizations, the private sector, the UN-REDD Programme and the UNFCCC.  The Participants Committee provides feedback on the R-PP applications, develops policy guidance, and forms working groups to tackle difficult issues.  Representatives from “Southern” and “Northern” civil society are included as observers to the Participants Committee.   There are three Southern observers, one each from the Latin America, Africa, and Asia regions, and one Northern observer representing donor country civil society.  The CSO Observers will share the 2 chairs available to them during meetings of the Participants Committee and participate in all meetings and working groups.  In this capacity, CSO Observers have voice, but not vote, in the decisions of the FCPF Participants Committee and the FCPF Carbon Fund.

FCPF REDD countries for Asia are:  Indonesia, Cambodia, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Nepal, Papua New Guinea, Thailand, Vanuatu, and Vietnam