Bishkek - 24 June, 2021 - A technical workshop to present the SDG Climate Action Nexus tool, designed to provide high-level guidance on how climate action can affect the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) was held today. This workshop was attended by representatives of the NewClimate Institute, representatives of the Macedonian Academy of Arts and Sciences, UNDP representatives in Kyrgyzstan and experts from different sectors in Kyrgyzstan.

The main objective of the workshop was to introduce the SDG Climate Action Nexus tool (SCAN tool), designed to provide high-level guidance on how climate action can influence the achievement of the SDGs. 

In 2015, UN Member State leaders agreed on targets to transition all economies and societies to sustainable and low-carbon development through the adoption of the Sustainable Development Agenda as well as the Paris Agreement of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The Paris Agreement emphasizes the need to consider sustainable development in the transition to low-carbon technologies, as preventing climate change is one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Thus, both these goals: sustainable development and combating climate change are interlinked and vital for the well-being of humanity.

Ms. Lira Joldubaeva, UNDP Head of Climate Change and Disaster Risk Management in the Kyrgyz Republic, emphasized the urgency of climate action and the importance of this workshop in the preparation of the NDCs and in the achievement of the SDGs: "These two agendas are interlinked and aligning their implementation provides a great opportunity to accelerate progress under both agreements. Given the increased need to exchange data to meet NDCs and SDG commitments, establishing the right data generation and management systems can bring the different actors together and ensure greater alignment.”

As part of the workshop, Ms. Sofia González-Zuñiga of the NewClimate Institute presented the SDG Climate Action Nexus tool (SCAN-tool), during which she explained the methodology and approach for analysing potential links between climate action and SDG targets and demonstrated a step-by-step process for using SCAN-tool.

The SCAN-tool focuses on usability and practicality and is designed to support policymakers across departments and at the national level to achieve greater policy coherence and improve policy implementation by providing them with an initial indication of which climate actions can affect specific SDG targets.

In addition, the SCAN-tool could potentially be used in the process of putting forward increasingly ambitious climate action commitments to be made every five years as part of the ambition mechanism of the Paris Agreement. A better understanding of how climate action can strengthen the achievement of the SDGs can increase countries' confidence in putting forward more ambitious Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and improve political support.

Ms Natasha Markovska from the Macedonian Academy of Arts and Sciences shared the recommendations and country experiences from the application of the SDG SCAN Tool in Northern Macedonia. She noted that "The country should go beyond expert work and involve as many different stakeholders as possible in identifying and weighing synergies and trade-offs, in reviewing and validating results. And we also recommend developing simple and user-friendly procedures that ensure a high level of inclusiveness and substantial stakeholder support."

Ms. Nazira Kerimalieva, representative of the National Committee of Statistics of the Kyrgyz Republic, described the monitoring system and country achievements under the SDGs and demonstrated the link between the NDCs and the SDGs.

Currently, under the UNDP Climate Promise project, Kyrgyzstan, together with key government agencies and experts, is in the process of revising and finalising its NDCs as part of its contribution to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and keeping global warming below 1.5 ℃ by 2050. The outcome of the NDC review will serve as the basis for the country's negotiations under the Paris Agreement, which will be used for discussion at the 26th session of the Climate Conference in Glasgow in November this year.

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Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) submitted by countries under the Paris Agreement of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) are climate change commitments that aim to limit global warming to well below 2 °C, preferably to 1.5 °C. NDCs embody each country's efforts to reduce national emissions and adapt to the impacts of climate change.