Excellencies and Colleagues,
My thanks to the COP 29 and COP 30 Presidencies for their leadership on climate transparency, which is a pillar of the Paris Agreement.
Transparency is fundamental for building trust among Member States. For establishing clear, honest reporting, which turns climate promises into progress the world can trust.
This is no mere exercise on paper. Compiling and reporting strong climate data enables more inbound investment and stronger policies, which allows nations to reap the huge benefits of the global shift to net-zero economies. We are talking about stronger economic growth, more jobs, better health, and more affordable and secure energy. Countries also use their national transparency systems and reports to identify urgent needs for finance, technology and capacity-building highlighting innovative approaches to climate adaptation.
Ultimately, climate transparency supports countries to accelerate ambition, sharpen policies, strengthen the case for investment and make real progress on climate action.
So, it is heartening that we can today celebrate a successful inaugural Enhanced Transparency Framework Cycle. Over 100 countries submitted their Bilateral Transparency Reports (BTRs). Technical expert reviews are being undertaken. The facilitative multilateral consideration of progress has been launched. We are witnessing the Paris machinery in full operation.
The COP 29 and COP 30 Presidencies leadership on climate transparency has been vital to this success. The COP 29 Presidencys Baku Transparency Platform was a key initiative on transparency, especially for mobilizing political momentum. This has complemented the Global Environment Facility-financed UNEP-led global transparency platform, which provides technical assistance to all developing countries.
Excellencies,
Despite the advances in transparency, we are far from where we want to be on climate action. UNEPs Emissions Gap Report finds that we are heading for a minimum global temperature rise of 2.3C, even if all conditional and unconditional Nationally Determined Contributions are implemented. This would be a disaster. Meanwhile, UNEPs Adaptation Gap Report tells us that the finance desperately required for adaptation in developing countries is nowhere near the levels it must reach.
So, we need stronger ambition and action to get as close to 1.5C as possible, and more adaptation finance flowing from public and private sources. Keeping up the momentum on climate transparency will be vital to deliver on such efforts.
It takes years of effort to build national transparency systems. UNEP is very aware of the inherent challenges, having supported over 90 developing countries, including many Small Island Developing States and Least-Developed Countries, to strengthen their systems and deliver on their Paris Agreement reporting commitments.
Many developing countries face a daunting challenge on how to measure and report their greenhouse gas emissions and track climate actions. Their institutions are under-resourced, their data systems fragmented, and their technical expertise scarce.
So, continued support to developing countries is crucial. They need assistance to build holistic and comprehensive national transparency systems, so they can attract investment and reap the benefits of strong adaptation and mitigation.
From the earliest national communications to the latest BTRs, UNEP has helped Member States build the foundations for climate transparency. UNEP is constantly seeking ways to improve delivery so that developing countries can receive funds quicker and submit their reports earlier. UNEP will also continue to strengthen support through the global transparency platform through, for example, peer-to-peer learning and engaging national and regional academic institutions to embed institutional knowledge.
Excellencies,
Today, developing countries are not just reporting they are leading. They are demonstrating that transparency is a beacon, not a burden. UNEP is proud to contribute to these efforts and is committed to ensuring that transparency becomes a more potent catalyst for ambition, trust and transformative climate action.
