Revisions to countries' commitments to halting climate change have shown only "fractional progress" over the last year, and fall short of what is needed to limit global warming, the UN said.
The organisation's synthesis report on updated nationally determined contributions (NDCs), documents submitted by countries outlining their commitments to halting climate change, shows little progress made over the last year.
Of 168 total NDCs, covering the 195 signatories to the Paris climate agreement, 34 have been updated since last year.
Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in 2025 and 2030, excluding land use, land use change and forestry, would total 53bn t and 51.5bn t/CO2e, respectively, if all pledges in the NDCs were met. This is down only very slightly on the 53.2bn t and 51.6bn t/CO2e implied by pledges, which had been made until last year.
The 2030 pledges would see emissions 2.6pc lower than in 2019. GHG need to be reduced by 43pc to limit global temperature rises to 1.5°C, according to the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
The proportion of NDCs which cover all or almost all the economy edged up by one percentage point to 81pc. And 78pc of NDCs indicate an intent to use voluntary cooperation mechanisms under Article 6 of the Paris agreement, up by one percentage point. But fewer NDCs specify which precise mechanism they wish to use. The proportion of parties planning to use either the bilateral Article 6.2 process or the bilateral Article 6.4 both fell by one percentage point to 52pc and 34pc respectively, while those expressing only a general intention to use Article 6 rose two points to 35pc.
There was little change in the precise GHGs covered by parties' NDCs. While all NDCs cover CO2, the main contributor to global warming, only 91pc cover methane, 89pc nitrous oxyde (N20) and 54pc hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), unchanged on last year. And the percentage covering perfluorocarbons (PFCs) and sulphur hexafluoride (SF6) has slipped to 35pc, down by one percentage point on last year.
The next round of NDC updates, due by February 2025, will have to show a "dramatic step up in climate action and ambition," according to UN climate change executive secretary Simon Stiell. The slow progress was expected, he said, with governments focusing on the next update round.
Government's plans will have to be ambitious, covering the entire economy and all gases, and credible, with substantive regulations, laws and funding put in place to reach the goals, Stiell said, adding that new plans should aim for stronger 2030 targets as well as include 2035 targets.
