World leaders representing more than 50% of the world’s economy have pledged to accelerate the roll out of clean technologies during this critical decade.
The new Glasgow Breakthrough Agenda signed at COP26 aims to cut the cost of clean technologies to make them the goto choice for the most polluting sectors, with efforts to focus on supporting a just transition in the power, road transport, hydrogen, steel and agriculture industries.
“Now, with more than 35 world leaders signing up to the Breakthrough Agenda, governments across the world will help dramatically scale and speed up the race to zero emissions and deliver the promise of the Paris Agreement. This is what the future of COP is all about – catalysing an innovative ambition loop between political leadership and the dynamism of the private sector to drive towards a resilient, prosperous zero carbon future,” said UN High-Level Climate Champions for COP25 and COP26, Gonzalo Munoz and Nigel Topping.
Progress on the Agenda will be reported on annually with reports ‘led by the International Energy Agency in collaboration with International Renewable Energy Agency and UN High Level Champions’.
Just energy transition
To support South Africa, the ‘world’s most carbon-intensive electricity producer’, leaders from the country, along with those from the US, UK, France, Germany, and the EU have pledged, through the new Accelerated Just Energy Transition partnership, to move South Africa away from coal. This will include the mobilisation of $8.5 billion over the next fives years to help South Africa hits its newly set Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) – as the Paris commitments are known.
South Africa’s President, Cyril Ramaphosa said: “We look forward to a long term partnership that can serve as an appropriate model of support for climate action from developed to developing countries, recognising the importance of a just transition to a low carbon, climate resilient society that promotes employment and livelihoods.”
