The successful implementation of a results-based payment scheme such as REDD+ depends on the credible measurement and reporting of performance. Much of this will relate to forest cover and condition, but it will also include the effectiveness of activities and potentially the distribution of monetary and non-monetary benefits to stakeholders. Increasingly information is also being collected to assess the forest-risk of the production and related trade of timber and agricultural commodities.
Likewise, successful implementation of FLEGT Voluntary Partnership Agreements (VPAs) relies on transparent, credible and robust means to ensure that timber products are produced and traded legally. The institutional and technical capacity developed for REDD+ to monitor deforestation and forest degradation could be useful for FLEGT if it provides information on forest management, forest cover, forest conversion, timber production and illegal activities.
REDD+ may also help build a greater national capacity and a culture of effective monitoring and verification in the forest sector.
Independent forest monitoring by non-governmental organisations, is a key component in the successful implementation of VPAs, as it contributes to transparency and accountability of the regulatory regime. Taking this independent monitoring outside the forest sector to focus on drivers of deforestation, such as agriculture and mining, could contribute to further REDD+ implementation and hold non-forest sector actors accountable for their impact on the forest cover.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo has started to develop its system for REDD+ measuring, monitoring, reporting and verification. Its VPA timber legality assurance system is at an early stage. Opportunities for synergies between the two monitoring systems are likely to appear progressively as their design and implementation proceed.
Civil society plays an important role in monitoring forest law enforcement in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, especially in situations where the government lacks the resources to perform control duties. The independent monitoring of forest governance (IM-FLEG) is framed by national forest law and implemented by a local NGO.
This local NGO expanded its scope to REDD+ (IM-REDD+) because many issues observed in the field directly affect both REDD+ and FLEGT processes. Exploring the common features of IM-FLEG and IM-REDD increased the efficiency of monitoring missions, enhanced transparency in law enforcement and of REDD+ safeguards, and significantly reduced costs. The development of the Maï Ndombe emissions reduction program represents a key opportunity for closer interaction between IM-REDD and IM-FLEG.