Regional analysis on NDCs in the SEMed region

The Paris Agreement sets a long-term goal for global climate action and establishes a number of binding requirements for all Parties, setting the pace of the international climate agenda. These include the preparation and communication of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs); the periodic review of these and the associated measures; the development of long-term low-carbon development strategies; adaptation, capacity building, finance and technology transfer. The Agreement includes a mention of regional, bilateral and multilateral approaches. The Union for the Mediterranean (UfM), bringing together developed and developing countries, has received the mandate to support countries in the preparation of their NDCs. In line with the commitments made under the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) Ministerial Declaration on Environment and Climate Change, adopted in Athens in March 2014, UfM Member States have been actively involved in the adoption of the Paris Agreement. This study aims at providing a compact assessment of where the South East Mediterranean (SEMed) countries stand with the NDCs implementation process. And thereby contributes to providing an accurate understanding of the UfM regional context and of possible synergies and complementarities among the national policies and measures in the region. The analysis considers the NDCs of 13 of the 15 SEMed Countries. Libya and Syria have not submitted NDCs. Due to constraints with regards to limited data available, these countries are not included in this analysis.

Authors: Jaime D. Fernández and Ashanapuri Hertz

December 2019