Protecting development gains

To achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and eradicate poverty and inequality, tackling the dual threats of climate change and disasters is essential. By building resilience and ensuring that all development is risk-informed, countries and communities can protect against losses and simultaneously boost economic growth, create jobs and livelihoods, strengthen access to health and education, and ensure that no one is left behind.

Energy and environment sector recognizes interconnectedness of climate change with issues of gender equality and protects and amplifies the voices of women. In all its activities, sector seeks to increase participation of women in decision-making processes at all levels. It seeks to promote women’s access to climate finance, technologies and knowledge.

The strategies for achieving this are: increasing direct access to financing for gender-just climate solutions, strengthening participation of women in environmental governance and green economy, increasing access to funding to gender-just climate solutions, building community based cooperative models to build resilience, and ensuring data accountability by strengthening gender-environment statistics.

Zero-carbon. Risk-informed. Sustainable.

UNDP’s support to countries on climate change and disaster resilience is shaped by three important global agreements: the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, the Sendai Framework on Disaster Risk Reduction, and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. UNDP works with countries to help them reduce greenhouse gases and advance a long-term goal of zero-carbon development. At the same time, we work together with partners to adapt to the impacts of climate change, enhance access to clean energy, reduce the risk of disasters and, where needed, support resilient disaster recovery. Taken all together, these efforts are the path towards sustainable development that is risk-informed, zero-carbon and resilient.

UNDP’S CLIMATE PROMISE

UNDP launched our Climate Promise at the UN Climate Action Summit in September 2019.
The Climate Promise supports over 100 countries to enhance their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement. Delivered in collaboration with a wide variety of partners, It is the world’s largest offer of support for the enhancement of climate pledges.

While climate change poses a risk for everyone and threatens to roll back decades of sustainable development gains, the poorest, marginalized, and most vulnerable populations are disproportionately burdened. UNDP advocates for an inclusive approach that supports whole-ofsociety ownership, advances equality, and strengthens social and environmental sustainability.

UNDP is leveraging its extensive climate change portfolio, its Country Office network and global policy services to provide thematic technical support to countries and ensure that NDCs are fully aligned with national sustainable development priorities.

The five service lines defined under UNDP’s Climate Promise respond to major areas of demand from developing countries and can be tailored and scaled up for maximum impact to fit specific country needs.

IN THE CONTEXT OF COVID-19

The global crisis caused by COVID-19 has impacted all aspects of life. Countries are faced with making immediate and immense policy choices and taking unprecedented action to protect lives, and to avoid catastrophic social, economic and political consequences.

As part of UNDP’s organizational approach to COVID-19, the Climate Promise works to strengthen countries’ abilities to prepare, respond and recover. Through the five Climate Promise service lines, UNDP is helping countries to immediately adapt and adjust NDC design and implementation activities in an inclusive and integrated manner.

In addition, UNDP is supporting governments to connect NDCs and the Paris Agreement to longer-term recovery efforts. Integrating climate action and principles of just transition and green economy into prevention planning, response plans and stimulus packages, as well as national and sub-national policies and investments, can lay the foundation for a low-emission and resilient society. This way, we can help to ensure that vulnerable communities are protected against the crises of today while also designing a more resilient and sustainable tomorrow.

OUR PROGRESS

As of April 2020, UNDP has received formal requests from 110 governments for support on NDC enhancement under the Climate Promise.