The UNFCCC Secretariat has reported that Bangladesh, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, Seychelles and South Africa have formally submitted their intended nationally determined contributions (INDCs), bringing the total number of Parties to have done so to 79.
In addition, the International Partnership on Mitigation and MRV (Measurement, Reporting and Verification) completed a training workshop on INDCs for African anglophone and lusophone countries.
25 September 2015: The UNFCCC Secretariat has reported that Bangladesh, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, Seychelles and South Africa have formally submitted their intended nationally determined contributions (INDCs), bringing the total number of Parties to have done so to 79. In addition, the International Partnership on Mitigation and MRV (Measurement, Reporting and Verification) completed a training workshop on INDCs for African anglophone and lusophone countries.
Bangladesh has submitted an unconditional contribution of reducing greenhouse (GHG) emissions by 5% from business as usual (BAU) levels by 2030 in the power, transport and industry sectors. Subject to international support through finance, investment, technology development and transfer, and capacity building, Bangladesh’s conditional contribution would reduce emissions by 15% from BAU levels by 2030 in the aforementioned sectors.
The INDC also indicates other mitigation actions that could be achieved in different sectors with international support, such as more efficient gas cookstoves in households and energy efficiency in buildings. Existing adaptation actions and next steps are also presented in the INDC.
In its INDC, Seychelles puts forward a mitigation objective of reducing its economy-wide absolute GHG emissions by 21.4% in 2025 and by an estimated 29% in 2030 relative to baseline BAU emissions. The INDC covers public electricity, land transport and solid waste management. The land use, land-use change and forestry (LULUCF) sector is excluded. As emissions from other sectors are insignificant, the contribution targets carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4).
Seychelles estimates the costs of achieving its 2030 mitigation objectives at US$309 million. It notes that including the cost of energy efficiency measures such as building codes, standards and labels, and energy audits will increase the total cost of implementation, which it intends to meet with both domestic resources and international support. Outlining its adaptation needs and planned actions, the country estimates the costs of adapting at US$295 million.
The submission from Georgia includes an unconditional target of reducing emissions by 15% relative to the 2030 BAU reference scenario. An alternate target of 25% is conditioned on a global agreement that addresses the importance of technical cooperation, access to low-cost financial resources and technology transfer. The INDC covers the agriculture, industrial processes, waste and energy sectors, and the following gases not covered by the Montreal Protocol: CO2, CH4, nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs) and sulphur hexafluoride (SF6). The Party also includes detailed commitments related to its forests and outlines planned adaptation measures.
The South African INDC includes adaptation, mitigation and support components. Under adaptation, it presents six goals for the 2020-2030 period. The mitigation component takes the form of a peak, plateau and decline (PPD) GHG emissions trajectory range, with its starting point at the end of 2020.
South Africa foresees its GHG emissions peaking between 2020 and 2025, followed by a plateau for approximately a decade and a decline in absolute terms thereafter. This target is economy-wide, covering all sectors and six GHGs. Under the support component, the Party identifies energy efficient lighting, variable speed drives and efficient motors, and energy efficient appliances as technologies that could help it reduce emissions further.
The contribution submitted by Belarus communicates an unconditional target of keeping emissions at least 28% below 1990 levels by 2030, excluding the LULUCF sector. The INDC covers CO2, CH4, N2O, HFCs, PFCs and SF6. It focuses on the power industry, industrial processes, use of solvents, agriculture and waste sectors. The contribution is framed in terms of decreasing energy and carbon intensity, pointing to an earlier decoupling of emissions and economic growth as a sign of a low-carbon development trajectory. The submission further outlines plans for forming programmes of adaptation actions and practices, as well as measures to increase carbon removals through sustainable forest management.
Molodova’s INDC sets an economy-wide, unconditional target of reducing GHG emissions by 64-67% below its 1990 level by 2030 and a conditional target of 78%. The latter is dependent on “a global agreement addressing important topics including low-cost financial resources, technology transfer, and technical cooperation, accessible to all at a scale commensurate to the challenge of global climate change.” The energy, industrial processes and product use, agriculture, LULUCF and waste are covered by the INDC. It includes the following gases: CO2, CH4, N2O, HFCs, PFCs, SF6 and NF3. A detailed annex on adaptation relates the country’s circumstances and intended actions in this area.
Just prior to the submission of these INDCs, anglophone and lusophone African countries participated in a training workshop convened by the International Partnership on Mitigation and MRV on 23-24 September 2015, in Entebbe, Uganda. The workshop provided in-depth technical training on the preparation of INDCs and served as a forum for learning from already-submitted INDCs. Four “clinics” at the workshop covered: baseline and data issues; options for packaging INDCs and information for INDC submissions; adaptation components; and procedural issues and domestic validation.
All Parties to the UNFCCC are expected to submit INDCs in advance of the Paris Climate Change Conference, which will take place in November-December 2015. Those submitted by 1 October 2015 will be included in a synthesis report on their aggregate effect by 1 November 2015. Parties are anticipated to agree on a global climate change agreement to take effect in 2020 at the Paris Climate Change Conference. [UNFCCC Press Release, Bangladesh] [Bangladesh’s INDC] [UNFCCC Press Release, Seychelles] [Seychelles’ INDC] [UNFCCC Press Release, Georgia] [Georgia’s INDC] [UNFCCC Press Release, South Africa] [South Africa’s INDC] [UNFCCC Press Release, Belarus] [Belarus’s INDC] [Belarus’s INDC – English] [UNFCCC Press Release, Moldova] [Moldova’s INDC] [UNFCCC INDC Portal] [International Partnership on Mitigation and MRV Press Release]