Jakarta—The United Nations (UN) has once again highlighted countries’ commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions through Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC). The annual report from the UN’s climate change agency, UNFCCC, shows that despite increased commitments from countries, the current global emissions reduction target is only 2.6 per cent of 2019 emission levels by 2030.
This falls short of scientists’ recommendations, which call for a 43 per cent reduction in emissions to limit global warming to below 1.5 degrees Celsius, as the Paris Agreement mandates. UNFCCC Secretary-General Simon Stiell underlined that ambitious measures are urgently needed to address the climate crisis.
“Existing national climate plans are far from sufficient to prevent the impacts of global warming that could devastate economies and threaten the livelihoods of billions of people,” Stiell said in an official statement on Monday, October 28.
The COP29 meeting, to be held next November in Baku, Azerbaijan, is said to be an important opportunity for countries to propose new NDC targets and strengthen their commitments. Experts emphasize that the success of COP29 will largely depend on negotiations to build an effective global emissions trading system and the fulfilment of the pledge of USD 100 billion per year in climate finance for developing countries.
Pablo Viera, Director of the Global NDC Partnership, noted the importance of ensuring that NDCs contain targets and strategies to attract public and private investment.
“Some countries want to make sure that their NDCs have elements that appeal to global finance, including the private sector,” Viera said.
Developing countries rely on these funds to implement green projects that can reduce dependence on fossil fuels. Viera also emphasized that financial support from developed countries should be used as a catalyst to drive action.
With the NDC update deadline in February next year, all eyes are on COP29. Ambitious agreements are expected to encourage real action, not just commitments on paper. (Hartatik)
