Cooperative climate action: global performance & delivery in the Global South

Geographic imbalances between the Global North and South persist among cooperative climate actions registered with the UNFCCC administered NAZCA platform. OECD-based, in particular Europe-based, stakeholders represent the majority of partners, lead partners and funders. In recent years, however, the share of implementation in developing countries has rapidly increased. The share of outputs produced in developing and emerging countries has increased from about 20% to 60% since 2013.

The output performance of cooperative climate actions has improved significantly in recent years. By 2017, about 70% of NAZCA registered cooperative actions achieved high or medium-high performance, producing relevant outputs to achieve desired changes in environmental and social indicators. As many cooperative climate actions explicitly refer to sustainable development co-benefits, higher output performance is also likely to benefit Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which are especially urgent in developing countries.

Despite positive trends in participation and implementation in the Global South, important knowledge gaps remain. The ClimateSouth project is currently surveying climate actions, specifically in Kenya and India. Initial findings indicate that many South-based climate actions are yet to be captured by existing platforms dedicated to climate action. The ClimateSouth project will continue efforts to map and track climate actions in the Global South involving stock-listed companies, small and medium enterprises, regional and local governments and cooperative initiatives.