NDCs

A Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) is a document that outlines a country’s commitments on climate action, as required by Parties to the Paris Agreement. The NDC outlines the country’s plans for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to reach the goals of the Paris Agreement and for adapting to the impacts of climate change. The NDC may also contain information on national needs for climate finance, technology or capacity building.

The Paris Agreement requires each Party to communicate its NDC to the Secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) every five years. The first round of mandatory NDC submission ended in 2021 (with a one-year delay due to the Covid-19 pandemic) and the second round of NDCs is due in 2025. Each NDC must represent a forward progression (e.g. in its emissions targets, policies and intervention areas) compared to previous iterations, and must reflect the country’s highest possible ambition. NDCs often contain common elements from country to country, but they can differ significantly based on national circumstances, institutional responsibilities and respective capacities and resources.

For the second round of NDCs due in 2025, each country must provide the information necessary to facilitate clarity, transparency and understanding (ICTU), when communicating the NDC. This information must include:

• Quantifiable information on the reference point (including, as appropriate, a base year);
• Time frames and/or periods for implementation;
• Scope and coverage;
• Planning processes;
• Assumptions and methodological approaches, including those for estimating and accounting for anthropogenic GHG emissions and, as appropriate, removals;
• How the Party considers its NDC is fair and ambitious in the light of its national circumstances;
• How the NDC contributes toward achieving the objective of the UNFCCC as set out in Article 2 of the Convention.

NDCs are linked to two major feedback mechanisms under the Paris Agreement: the Enhanced Transparency Framework (ETF) and the Global Stocktake (GST).
As part of the ETF, countries will report on their greenhouse gas emissions, progress toward their NDCs, adaptation measures, and support provided and received in Biennial Transparency Reports (BTRs) from 2024. The ETF also includes procedures for reviewing the submitted reports. The information gathered through the ETF informs the GST.

Through the GST, countries assess their collective progress toward the long-term climate goals of the Paris Agreement. The GST takes place every five years and is intended to inform the next round of NDCs. The first GST concluded at COP28 in 2023 and is supposed to inform the NDCs that countries need to submit by 2025. The GST helps policymakers and stakeholders strengthen their climate policies and commitments, paving the way for accelerated action.

NDCs present a key opportunity for identifying domestic mitigation and adaptation needs and measures to tackle climate change through agriculture and food systems.

In addition to NDCs, least developed and developing countries also submit National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) – established in 2010 under the Cancún Adaptation Framework. NAPs are national frameworks that identify a country’s medium- and long-term adaptation needs and develop strategies to address these vulnerabilities. Whereas the adaptation components of a country’s NDC establish its global commitment to adapt to climate change impacts, NAPs serve as domestic planning documents to evaluate and address the country’s adaptation needs.