Despite the many calls to reform the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), its conceptual underpinnings are strong and it will most likely survive in the post-2012 climate regime. Some modifications may be considered in the short term to strengthen the effectiveness and transparency of the mechanism without modifying the Marrakech Accords.

Under the World Bank's Sustainable Development Network Integration "Challenge Fund Initiative,' a joint "ESMAP - Carbon Finance Unit' team examined the synergies and possibilities of scaling up implementation of dispersed, demand-side EE efforts using the emerging programmatic CDM (pCDM) concept. This paper focuses on the key recommendations of this analysis, the potential scaling-up opportunities, and underlying operational synergies between EE programs in developing countries and pCDM.