OECD commits to cooperation on Paris Agreement goals ahead of COP26 talks

Members of the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC) have today issued a joint Declaration ahead of COP26 committing to align official development assistance (ODA), which totalled USD 161 billion in 2020, with the goals of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.

The Declaration states: “As the custodians of the governance of ODA, we commit to aligning our ODA with the goals of the Paris Agreement. Climate and environmental impacts must be considered in all ODA spend, including in sectors not traditionally associated with climate and the environment. Alignment with the Paris Agreement will recognise the unique circumstances of partner countries and support their own low carbon, climate resilient development pathways and transition towards net zero economies, while minimising the risk of creating stranded assets.”

DAC Chair Susanna Moorehead said, “Developing countries need visibility and a voice at COP26. If you’re a poor woman or man in an LDC or a SIDS, climate change is already making it harder to feed your children and make a livelihood. We can’t reduce poverty and leave no one behind without also tackling climate change and helping poor countries to adapt. That is what the DAC has agreed to do in its landmark Declaration.”

The UN COP26 climate summit is set to kick off in Glasgow on Sunday 31 October, during which Prime Minister Boris Johnson reportedly hopes to strike a global deal to curb temperature rises.

The Paris Agreement of 2016, agreed by the Conference of the Parties, has committed the UK to reducing national carbon dioxide emissions by 68% by 2030 based on 1990 levels.

As part of its strategy to address climate change and reduce climate risk, the UK became the world’s first major economy to legislate on achieving net-zero emissions.

This decision was recommended by the Committee of Climate Change and set out to bolster the UK’s national and international obligations around global warming.

The UK has pledged to reduce emissions by 80% between the years of 1990 and 2050. In June 2019, the UK passed legislation increasing this goal to 100%, thereby carving the path towards a net-zero economy.