In accordance with the approval of the UAE Cabinet on the third revision of the country’s second Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) under the Paris Agreement, the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MOCCAE) has unveiled a comprehensive roadmap to achieve a 40 percent carbon emission reduction by 2030.
This significant step signifies a nationwide commitment to Carbon Emission Reduction, with clear targets established for all domestic sectors. The aim is to unite the entire nation, including the public and private sectors, in accelerating the UAE’s progress towards achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.
Despite being officially classified as a developing country, the UAE is furthering its commitment by adopting fixed level and base year targets, following the approach of developed nations in its third NDC revision. As per the updated NDC, greenhouse gas emissions are projected to decrease from an anticipated 208 MtCO2e to 182 MtCO2e by 2030. This represents a 19 percent absolute reduction in emissions compared to the base year level of 2019.
Mariam bint Mohammed Almheiri, Minister of Climate Change and the Environment, said: “In the Year of Sustainability, when our nation hosts COP28, this milestone announcement underlines our national commitment to more ambitious climate action. The UAE believes that climate action across every aspect of our economy is vital for creating a prosperous future.
“We have progressively raised ambition in less than three years, highlighted by the commitment to reduce emissions by 23.5 per cent in our second NDC; decreased this further to 31 per cent in our second updated NDC; and pushed our efforts even further to reach a reduction of 40 per cent in our third update of our second NDC compared to business as usual.”
The UAE’s voluntary and proactive approach ensures transparency and facilitates tracking of emission reduction goals, aligning directly with the UN Sustainable Development Goals and yielding beneficial outcomes. Specific sectoral targets will be implemented to collectively reduce emissions in domestic sectors such as power and water generation, heavy industry, transport, waste, buildings, and agriculture.
The implementation roadmap in the UAE includes enhanced governance structures and the introduction of new policy initiatives. The updated NDC also demonstrates the UAE’s commitment to the goals of the Paris Agreement in limiting global warming to below 2 degrees Celsius and striving for a limit well below 1.5 degrees Celsius by the end of the century.
The third revision of the second NDC builds upon the UAE Cabinet’s approval of the recently announced updated UAE National Energy Strategy 2050 and the comprehensive National Hydrogen Strategy, which positions hydrogen as a significant clean energy source. The UAE aims to triple its investments in renewable energy over the next seven years and establish a dedicated national research and development center for the hydrogen sector.
The process of updating the NDC involved comprehensive nationwide efforts by the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, engaging all entities. Governments at various levels, including federal, emirate, city, and municipality, collaborated to develop the roadmap for achieving the 2030 targets. Over 100 bilateral meetings with public and private entities were conducted, along with dedicated workshops, providing more than 110 opportunities for stakeholders to contribute to the process. Approximately 800 feedback submissions were carefully considered by MOCCAE during the development of the updated NDC.
The needs of vulnerable groups, including youth, women, children, and individuals with disabilities, were given priority throughout this process.