4 March 2024, Colombo, Sri Lanka: 16 countries from Africa, Europe and Central Asia, Africa and Arab State regions have gathered in Colombo, Sri Lanka for a global exchange workshop on climate action. The gathering begins today and will last until March 7. The aim of the workshop is for countries to share best practices, celebrate achievements and explore lessons learned from their work.

With the support of the Government of Japan, the United Nations Development Programme has assisted developing countries in translating their national climate pledges (also known as their Nationally Determined Contributions, or NDCs) into tangible actions since 2021. The funding is implemented through UNDP’s flagship initiative, Climate Promise.

Speaking on Japan’s contribution, His Excellency Katsuki Kotaro, Deputy Head of Mission, Embassy of Japan to Sri Lanka, noted that “we welcome the workshop involving 16 countries including Sri Lanka aimed at supporting decarbonization and climate adaptation efforts in developing nations, to be held through Japan's supplementary budget. We anticipate that initiatives contributing to Green Transformation facilitated by Japanese companies' technologies and participation will not only support climate goals but also aid Sri Lanka's economic recovery. We express our renewed respect to Ms. KUBOTA Azusa, Resident Representative of UNDP in Sri Lanka, for her efforts in implementing this project and organizing the workshop and look forward to continued collaboration in the future.”

During the workshop, countries will also share lessons learned on leveraging funding from Japan to advance their NDCs towards net-zero emissions and climate-resilient development.

"The Climate Promise has been a catalytic tool for UNDP to support Sri Lanka with its ambition to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 14.5 per cent by 2030," said Ms Azusa Kubota, Resident Representative of UNDP in Sri Lanka. “We are honored to host this global event in Colombo to facilitate sharing of experiences and knowledge across countries and for UNDP to lay a strategic foundation to support counties towards the 3rd generation of NDCs.” 

The workshop provides a crucial platform to explore key areas of climate action, including just transition, sustainable agriculture practices, clean energy and transport, adaptation, and more. Around 40 participants will share knowledge, field experiences, challenges, and solutions from their respective countries, emphasizing the importance of fostering partnerships and enhancing visibility efforts.

Dr Anil Jasinghe, Senior Additional Secretary & Chief Executive Officer, Climate Change Office, Presidential Secretariat noted that, “Initiatives such as ‘Climate Promise’ are crucial for countries like Sri Lanka to accelerate our journey towards reaching climate action targets…On behalf of the Government and the Japan funded Climate promise project implementing countries present here, I would like to take this opportunity to thank UNDP and the Government of Japan for initiating these timely, crucial development projects and supporting countries to transition towards green development pathway.”

In 2022, under the second phase of the Japan Supplementary Budget (JSB) USD 23.6 million were allocated to support the implementation of the NDC goals in 16 countries across Africa, Europe and Central Asia, Africa, and Arab State regions.

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Japan considers that the climate crisis is a threat to all humanity and, in cooperation with UNDP, leads countries to accelerate their climate action.

In 2021, UNDP launched a new phase of Climate Promise – From Pledge to Impact – aimed at translating NDC targets into concrete action. Japan is the largest supporter of this phase and joins longstanding partners such as Germany, Sweden, the European Union, Spain, and Italy and new partners such as the United Kingdom, Belgium, Iceland, and Portugal to accelerate these efforts.

About UNDP’s Climate Promise 
UNDP’s flagship Climate Promise initiative has supported 85 per cent of all developing country NDC submissions during the latest revision cycle, 91 per cent of which raised mitigation ambition and 93 per cent of which raised adaptation ambition. Nearly 95 per cent of all NDCs supported included gender equality considerations and referenced youth inclusion. The revised NDCs also had higher-quality data and analysis.

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