Transcript BARRIERS TO TRANSFER OF TECHNOLOGIES TO LEAST DEVELOPED COUNTRIES (LDCs) Mr. Bubu Pateh Jallow On behalf of the Chairman LDC Expert Group (LEG) UNFCCC Workshop on Technology.

BARRIERS TO TRANSFER OF
TECHNOLOGIES TO LEAST
DEVELOPED COUNTRIES (LDCs)
Mr. Bubu Pateh Jallow
On behalf of the
Chairman
LDC Expert Group (LEG)
UNFCCC Workshop on Technology Transfer
9 to 10 April 2003
Ghent, Belgium
Reminder on LDCs and the LEG
LDCs under the UNFCCC is a group of countries given special
consideration by the Convention process under Article 4, paragraph
9 of the Convention. This is due to their special circumstances
{LOW NATIONAL INCOME, WEAK HUMAN ASSET AND
HIGH ECONOMIC VULNERABILITY: unctad.org/}.
The LEG is the technical group mandated to provide technical
advice to LDC Parties on the implementation of the relevant
Articles of the Convention Process
Current Composition of the LEG is
(1) Laavas Malua (Samoa as Chair); (2) Paul Desanker (Malawi as Vice
Chair) (3) Lubinda Aongola (Zambia as Anglo Rapporteur); (4) (Franco
Rapporteur vacant), (5) Dechen Sering (Bhutan); (6) Bubu Pateh Jallow
(Gambia) (7) Abebe Tadege (Ethiopia); (8) Mizan Khan (Bangladesh),
(9) Mohamed Ali (Maldives); (10) Philip Baker (Canada); (11) Henk
Bosch (The Netherlands also CGE Member); (12) (3rd Annex II vacant)
Framework for Implementation of
Article 4.5 of the Convention
Purpose of the Framework
To develop meaningful and effective actions to
enhance the implementation of Article 4, paragraph 5,
of the Convention by increasing and improving the
transfer of and access to environmentally sound
technologies (ESTs) and know-how.
 Agreed and to be implemented by all Parties but
with the understanding that
 Parties have common but differentiated
responsibilities;
Parties are at different levels of development
Barriers to technology transfer to the
Least Developed Countries
Assessment of Barriers to technology transfer to
LDCs is judged and based on the following
components of the Framework
technology needs and needs assessment,
technology information,
enabling environments,
capacity-building, and
mechanisms for technology transfer
Barriers to technology needs and needs
assessments to be undertaken by LDCs
LDC have very low human and institutional
capacities and competencies to manufacture and
maintain various technologies.
Lack financial capacity to undertake assessments of
country-specific technology needs;
poor technical information base in many LDC
countries which seriously affects the capacity for
effective identification and selection of technologies;
lack of an appropriately-skilled critical mass at the
technical level.
Technology information
poor technical information base in all LDC
countries is a barrier which seriously affects the
capacity for effective identification and selection
of technologies;
Enabling environments
According to the TT Framework the enabling
environments component focuses on government actions
to create an environment conducive to private and public
sector technology transfer.
However we have often heard Annex I Parties in their
negotiating positions express that technology
development and transfer is a private sector activity with
very little control by the public sector (government)
The creation of enabling environments in the Developed
and Developing World, particularly in Least Developed
Countries present critical barriers to the process of
Technology Transfer under the UNFCCC
Enabling environments (Barriers)
The private sector and investors in most LDC countries
have not been actively engaged in climate change and so
are yet to see clear links between business and climate
change;
Inadequate macro-economic policies and explicit national
policies that support technology development, acquisition
of skills and knowledge from external sources, and
upgrading of indigenous skills in these group of countries;
This inadequacy of policies creates an investment
environment that often discourages participation by the
private sector, investors and other non-government
stakeholders;
Enabling environments (Barriers)
Inadequate services, communications and transport
infrastructure at the national and regional level and
inadequate coordination mechanism between local,
national and regional institutions in LDCs inhibit
widespread market deployment of ESTs.
Weak regulatory and enforcement mechanisms, nontransparent legal systems with long arbitration processes
and high legal fees discourage investors and the private
sector in effectively participating in technology transfer;
lack of institutional capacity to influence global
thinking on local and foreign technology development
and dissemination initiatives.
Enabling environments (Barriers)
lack of local ability and institutional capacity
to participate in the transfer of technology and
conduct technology research and development;
Unwillingness of the developed countries to
open-up their technologies to the developing
world and collaborate to share technical skills and
provide economic assistance to communities with
the greatest problems and the least resources. This
contributes to continuous reliance upon foreign
technology.
Enabling environments (Barriers)
Resistance to change is a serious barrier in LDCs as
it leads to inefficiencies and also stagnation in the
development of new methods and techniques.
Markets in LDCs lack incentives to stimulate
the development and deployment of
environmentally-sound technologies because
The size of the markets is relatively small, fair
pricing system is non-existence or weak and lower
rates of return on investments are not uncommon.
the financial systems fails to give correct price
signals and views investment in ESTs as risky.
Capacity-building Barriers
Inadequate collaboration and cooperation among LDCs at
the sub-regional and regional levels in the implementation
of the capacity building component of the Technology
Transfer Framework;
Non response of Annex II Parties in the provision of
resources to assist developing countries, particularly LDCs
in the implementation of the capacity-building component
of the Technology Transfer Framework;
Very weak levels of human and institutional capacities in
LDCs which is places these countries at a disadvantaged
position to choose and cooperate with;
The situation also makes capacity building more expensive
in LDC countries compared to other developing countries
WAY FORWARD
To remove the Barriers to Technology
Transfer in LDCs it is an opportunity for these
countries to highlight these in the NAPAs and
propose activities to remove the barriers.