National Forest Monitoring Systems: Monitoring and Measurement, Reporting and Verification (M & MRV) in the context of REDD+ Activities

This document builds on the brief paper presented at the 7th Meeting of the UN-REDD Programme Policy Board, held in Berlin, October 2011 (UNREDD/PB7/2011/13), which lays out ways to consider the REDD+ monitoring and information provision needs in the broader context of national development and environmental strategies, at the implementation level. The purpose of this document is to describe the elements in National Forest Monitoring Systems (NFMSs) as they relate to REDD+ under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), and to describe the UN-REDD Programme approach to Monitoring and Measurement, Reporting and Verification (M & MRV) requirements. This paper is presented in a series of sections discussing the various elements of relevant texts of the UNFCCC and the methodological recommendations of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). This approach aims to allow the end-user to consider the implications of the implementation of REDD+ activities in distinct national contexts, and the various steps involved.