The Katowice Climate Package: Making the Paris Agreement Work for All
The UN Climate Change Secretariat in Bonn (UNFCCC) has published an overview of the decisions taken at the last climate change conference in Katowice, Poland.
When delegates adopted the 2015 Paris Agreement to widespread cheers and excitement, it was clear that further details needed to be negotiated on how the agreement would be implemented transparently and fairly for all.
“Recognizing the urgency, governments overcame difficult political and complex technical issues to agree the Katowice Climate Package at COP24 (…) The Katowice outcome is a breakthrough that all governments can be proud of! It strengthens the Paris Agreement and it opens the doors for the implementation of climate action across the globe,” said the UN Climate Chief, Patricia Espinosa.
The Package sets out the essential procedures and mechanisms that will make the Paris Agreement operational. The successful adoption of well-crafted implementation guidelines promises to build greater trust and to strengthen international cooperation on one of the greatest challenges of our times: transitioning to a low-emissions, climate-resilient world. The Paris Agreement sets the ambitious goal of limiting global warming to well below 2°C while pursuing efforts to limit the increase to 1.5°C.
The implementation guidelines for the Paris Agreement respect the different capabilities and socio-economic realities of each country while providing the foundation for ever-increasing ambition with respect to climate action.
They establish an effective international system for promoting and tracking progress while empowering countries to build national systems for implementing the Agreement. Functioning together, these systems will enable countries to transparently contribute their share of action for tackling the global challenge of climate change.
The Katowice outcome is a complex package, achieved through in-depth technical discussions and political compromise and containing operational guidance on: providing information, communication, rules for the functioning of the transparency framework, setting up a committee to facilitate the implementation and colouring of the fulfilment of the commitments of the Paris Agreement, the global stocktaking of overall progress, the evaluation of progress and the provision of prior information on financial assistance.