Programme Summary

UNDP is supporting the Government of Iraq to develop a high-level climate change policy through the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) that addresses both mitigation of greenhouse gases and adaptation towards climate change; with focus on gender and the private sector. The NDC will also include monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) to ensure transparent implementation, in addition to developing indicators that will simplify the review, enhancement and update process.

The NDC will be submitted to the United Nation Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) once finalized, and will support Iraq to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase climate resilience in order to achieve the goal of the Paris Agreement to keep global average temperature rise well below 2 degrees above pre-industrial levels. The NDC will reflect Iraq’s ambition to reduce emissions, taking into account its domestic circumstances and capacities and with conditional targets based on technical and funding support. 

A multi-stakeholder approach will be implemented throughout the consultation and development process, engaging relevant ministries, private sector, academia and NGOs.

What we aim to achieve

The project aims to develop an NDC which:

• Includes both climate mitigation and adaptation projects, with a focus on increasing the resilience of the country through shifting the national budget towards a “Green Economy”; 
• Highlights private sector and gender considerations throughout the process as well as encourages women’s’ meaningful participation and leadership throughout implementation;
• Is validated by the UNFCCC;
• Includes a transparent measurement, reporting and verification system to track the NDC process.