We, the Ministers and Heads of Delegation from the 45 Least Developed Countries (LDCs), as Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement, having met in Lilongwe, Malawi on 28th August 2024:

1. Underline the urgency of deep reductions in global emissions aligned with the 1.5°C warming limit, building global resilience and greatly scaling up support with stronger commitment and collaboration for addressing the worsening climate crisis in our vulnerable countries, including through the urgent and full implementation of all outcomes of the first Global Stocktake;
   
2. Underscore that climate finance is a key enabler of climate action in developing countries, emphasises the importance of setting a New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) on climate finance at COP29 that is based on science and reflects the evolving needs of developing countries, particularly the special needs and circumstances of LDCs, to adapt to its inevitable impacts, address loss and damage and mitigate climate change, through the provision of new and additional public finance, predominantly delivered as grants, highlighting that the financial needs of developing countries have been estimated at USD 5.8-5.9 trillion for the 2030 period and that finance needed by LDCs to implement their current NDCs is at least USD 1 trillion;
   
3. Call on all Parties to submit new and updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) by early next year with emission reduction targets aligned with pathways to limit warming to 1.5°C, emphasising also the findings of IPCC Sixth Assessment Report that limiting warming to 1.5°C requires rapid, deep, and immediate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reductions in all sectors, with global GHG emissions peaking before 2025 reducing by 43% by 2030 and 60% by 2035 relative to 2019 levels and reaching net zero carbon dioxide emissions by 2050;
   
4. Express our deep concern about the growing number of affected people, particularly women and children, who are displaced from their homes by the impacts of climate change and call on the international community to provide the necessary support for these people and to establish effective legal protection measures for people displaced across national borders due to climate change;
   
5. Stress that the success of the UAE Framework for Global Climate Resilience depends not only on robust indicators which should include a strong gender focus, but also critically depends on delivering sufficient and equitable means of implementation to transform it into a reality;
   
6. Stress that the COP29 outcome must recognize and ensure the full implementation of the first Global Stocktake (GST) outcomes, including submission of the new and updated NDCs aligned to 1.5°C by early 2025 and formulation of NAPs by 2025 and progress in implementation by 2030, with scaled-up support for the LDCs;
   
7. Call on developed country Parties to scale up climate finance, to fully deliver on the current climate finance goal of $100 billion per year by 2020 through to 2025, and to urgently increase adaptation action and support, going beyond the intended doubling of adaptation finance from 2019 level by 2025;
   
8. Further call for substantial pledges to the Fund for responding to Loss and Damage (FLD), LDC Fund, Green Climate Fund (GCF), and Adaptation Fund, recognising the significant gap that currently exists between climate finance provided and mobilized, and the resources needed in our countries;
   
9. Affirm the specific priorities of the LDC Group on different issues as set out in the Annex hereto;
   
10. Commit to further advancing the LDC Initiative for Effective Adaptation and Resilience (LIFE-AR), the LDC Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Initiative for Sustainable Development (LDC REEEI) and the LDC Universities Consortium on Climate Change (LUCCC); express appreciation to partners who have already committed their support towards these initiatives; and call for further support from the international community to accelerate the implementation of these initiatives in our countries;
    
11. Welcome the progress made towards establishing a permanent secretariat for the LDC Group on Climate Change and its operationalization;
    
12. Welcome Azerbaijan, as in-coming COP29 Presidency, on their commitment towards delivering fair and ambitious outcomes at COP 29 that reflect the priorities of LDCs; and
    
13. Express gratitude and appreciation to the host country, Republic of Malawi, for their hospitality and leadership of this important ministerial meeting; and thank Malawi for chairing the LDC Group.

Key messages of the LDC Group

General

• The urgency of addressing climate change has never been clearer. The devastating impacts of climate change are increasing in frequency and severity, creating irreversible loss and damage.
• The 45 Least Developed Countries are disproportionately affected by climate change. Despite negligible contributions to global emissions, our countries and people are amongst the worst impacted by the climate crisis.
• The full implementation of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement is vital: equitable and ambitious action by all Parties is urgently needed.
• The Group expresses appreciation to the Government of UAE for a successful COP28 outcome; the COP28 UAE Consensus stands out for its comprehensive approach to urgently tackling the climate crisis, and to the Troika Presidencies (COP28, COP29, and COP30) for advancing the work on the ‘Roadmap to Mission 1.5.’
• The existing provisions of the Convention and the Paris Agreement that recognises the special needs and circumstances of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Small Island Developing States (SIDS) must be effectively implemented.

Science

• The importance of science in driving transformational change cannot be overstated; climate actions at the global, regional, and local levels must be firmly rooted in and guided by science, particularly that provided by the IPCC.
• Recognizing the critical importance of the IPCC reports, it is of utmost importance that the three Working Groups Reports of the IPCC Seventh Assessment (AR7) cycle be ready by early 2028 to serve as inputs to the second Global Stocktake.

Climate Finance

• The New Collective Goal on Climate Finance (NCQG) must be significantly higher than the current goal of $100 billion per year, reflecting the actual needs for developing countries to address climate change, estimated at USD $5.8 – $5.9 trillion in the pre-2030 period.
• The scope of the NCQG must include climate finance for mitigation, adaptation, and addressing loss and damage.
• The NCQG should establish a common definition of climate finance that ensures funding considered ‘climate finance’ is new and additional to existing development finance, and that only concessional finance is included as climate finance.
• The NCQG should provide quick and easy access to climate finance, simplify application and disbursement processes, reduce transaction costs and promote direct access to LDCs.
• The NCQG must operationalise the special needs and circumstances of the LDCs as provisioned in Article 9 (4) and Article 9 (9) of the Paris Agreement.
• The NCQG must incorporate fairness, equity and justice considerations, including the precarious debt distress conditions of developing countries, in particular LDCs.

Mitigation

• Existing plans and policies to mitigate climate change remain far from what is needed to limit average global temperature increase to 1.5°C; this emissions gap must be closed through more ambitious and accelerated action in this critical decade.
• Countries’ updated and new Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) must include strengthened targets and commitments for deeper emissions reductions that are aligned to limiting warming to 1.5°C.
• The updated and new NDCs should have a primary focus on delivering emissions reductions within each country rather than transferring mitigation obligations by market mechanisms.
• Scaled up and enhanced means of implementation should be provided to the LDCs for realising LDCs huge potential for scaling up renewable energy as a central element of transitioning to net zero emissions and climate resilient development.
• The Sharm el-Sheikh Mitigation Ambition and Implementation Work Programme (MWP) must create enabling conditions and showcase actionable solutions for effective implementation of mitigation actions aligned with 1.5°C, including through supporting implementation of the mitigation elements of the first GST outcome and the mobilisation of support.
• The LDC group calls for a substantive decision on the Mitigation Work Programme at COP29, ensuring it fully supports the implementation of the Global Stocktake outcomes; and therefore Rule 16 or simply repeating COP28 decision is not an option.

Just Transition

• The UAE Just Transition Work Programme (JTWP) must deliver actionable outcomes to enable equitable, 1.5°C-aligned transitions that leave no one behind, are in line with national contexts, and enabled through increased multilateral cooperation.
• Increased energy access in LDCs through scaled-up investments in renewables, and the diverse and unique socioeconomic contexts of LDCs must be a key consideration while implementing the JTWP.
• The JTWP must consider the special needs and circumstances of LDCs, avoiding additional burdens that may constrain LDCs in creation of green decent jobs and advancing socio-economic development.
• The full range of means of implementation, particularly enhanced access to climate finance, is key for LDCs to enable transitions towards low-carbon climate resilient economies that do not compromise on development.

Adaptation

• Adaptation to the adverse impacts of climate change is critical and must be dealt with in a balanced manner with mitigation with respect to both action and support. This approach is essential in ensuring the effective implementation of the UAE Framework for Global Climate Resilience and achieving the Global Goal on Adaptation (GGA).
• The UAE-Belém Work Programme on Indicators must develop a robust set of indicators that assess and enable tracking on the global progress towards the GGA Framework Targets. These indicators should highlight gaps and identify where urgent support and actions are needed. The indicators should be context-sensitive and reflective of the capacity and resource challenges faced by LDCs and should not create a delay in support for adaptation while these indicators are being developed.
• The scaled-up provision of adaptation finance and other means of implementation must be recognized as a fundamental measure of progress towards the GGA. We emphasize that equitable access to these resources for LDCs is essential if the GGA is to move beyond aspirations and become a reality.
• National Adaptation Plans (NAPs), and their implementation, are essential for scaling up adaptation action in LDCs. To ensure all LDCs have NAPs by 2025, and progress meaningfully in their implementation by 2030, sufficient and adequate resources are urgently required to support LDCs that are yet to formulate or implement their NAP.

Loss and Damage

• The Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage (FLD) needs to be capitalized with additional and adequate finance that meets the needs of vulnerable developing countries, requiring new and additional pledges made at COP29 from Parties with greater responsibility and capabilities.
• The NCQG must include a sub-goal for finance for addressing loss and damage in addition to adaptation and mitigation, so the FLD is predictably and adequately capitalised.
• The FLD must ensure a fair allocation of its finance to LDCs.
• The FLD should be set up with modalities that enable rapid, simple and direct budget support to governments through national treasuries and ministries of finance, as well as to enable direct access for national and subnational entities.
• The Santiago Network for Loss and Damage must be operating in 2024 to catalyze the technical assistance to vulnerable developing countries.
• The WIM review must be comprehensive, including a review of the fulfilment of its third function on enhancing action and support for loss and damage.
• The WIM must continue to report to both the governing bodies of the UNFCCC and the Paris Agreement.

Global Stocktake under the Paris Agreement

• The COP29 outcome must recognize and ensure the full implementation of the GST outcomes.
• The GST outcomes provide essential guidance for revisiting and strengthening the 2030 emissions reductions targets in current Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), and submitting new NDCs with 2035 targets, to align with the Paris Agreement’s goal of limiting warming to 1.5°C.
• The next new and updated NDCs should include information on how the different elements of the GST outcome have been incorporated and aligned to 1.5°C.
• The existing and growing climate finance gap must be addressed, by ensuring that the NCQG reflects the quality and scale of climate finance needed for climate action aligned with 1.5°C.
• Transitioning away from fossil fuels and tripling renewable energy capacity and doubling energy efficiency globally by 2030 must be a key focus of GST implementation. This will require scaling up investments in renewables this decade, and not pursuing technologies or policy decisions that risk locking in the status quo and producing stranded assets.
• There is an urgent need to phase out fossil fuels subsidies, consistent with addressing concerns around just transition and energy poverty.
• There must be increased attention on the rapidly and subsidized transfer of technologies to LDCs including for renewable energy, energy storage, electric transportation, waste management, and low-carbon fuels to meet urgent energy needs as well as contributing to climate change mitigation goals.
• The scope and modalities of the UAE Dialogue on implementation of the GST outcome must focus on implementation of all the GST outcomes with a focus on means of implementation.
• On the refinement of the procedural and logistical elements of the overall GST process, alignment with future IPCC Assessment Cycles as key inputs for future GSTs remains of the utmost importance. This includes alignment of the reports under the IPCC’s Seventh Assessment Cycle with the second GST.

Article 6 of the Paris Agreement

• The remaining rules and procedures for Article 6.2 cooperative approaches and the Article 6.4 mechanism should be finalized through the development of methodologies, infrastructure and procedures, to support raising ambition on mitigation and achieve an overall mitigation in global emissions, without compromising environmental integrity and contributing towards sustainable development.
• With respect to the Article 6.4 mechanism the development of methodologies and required infrastructure and procedure must be further regulated to ensure the mechanisms maintain environmental integrity, and lead to real global emissions reductions, and support for adaptation through a share of proceeds.
• Many LDCs have expressed their willingness to utilize the carbon market to achieve their mitigation targets, therefore, it is crucial to conclude this process of finalizing the work on rules promptly so that countries waiting to use markets to enhance ambition can effectively participate.
• Special circumstances of LDCs must be recognised and considered during the finalization of the rules and procedures including the capacity building programme to be operationalised immediately to support LDCs to effectively participate in Article 6 mechanisms.
• Voluntary carbon markets must deliver real and additional emission reductions and be aligned with the rules established under Article 6.2 and Article 6.4 of the Paris Agreement.

Enhanced Transparency Framework (ETF) under the Paris Agreement

• Developing countries require timely and adequate support to effectively engage with the Enhanced Transparency Framework (ETF), starting with the submission of the first Biennial Transparency Reports (BTRs) in 2024.
• Full and accurate reporting by all parties is crucial to gain a complete understanding of the Paris Agreement’s implementation and progress towards its goals.
• LDCs are committed to transparency, with several countries already advancing towards meeting the Paris Agreement’s reporting requirements, but there is a critical need for robust support to ensure that developing countries, including LDCs, can fully and effectively implement the Paris Agreement Technology Development and Transfer
• The Climate Technology Center and Network (CTCN) provide significant support in the process of Technology Needs Assessment (TNAs) and the Technical Assistance (TA), however, these efforts and support will only benefit the LDCs if the outcomes of the TNAs are appropriately implemented.
• The Technology Implementation Programme (TIP) should strengthen linkages between the Technology agenda and the Financial mechanism, to help mobilize adequate and accessible financial resources for acquiring the necessary climate technologies, in line with the priorities identified in the TNAs and Technical Assistance.
• The TIP should address the current technology gaps and emerging priorities of the LDCs including
• capacity building, while creating transformational changes in the communities.

Agriculture

• The Sharm el-Sheikh joint work on implementation of climate action on agriculture and food security, has made great progress by agreeing to draft conclusions with the understanding to start with the online portal, followed by workshops, and a synthesis report.
• The recommendations of the Koronivia joint work on agriculture should be carried out, with developed countries allocating resources for implementation. This commitment is critical to improve the livelihoods of small-scale farmers that are more vulnerable to the impacts of climate Change.

Action for Climate Empowerment (ACE)

• The successful implementation of Action for Climate Empowerment (ACE) is not just beneficial but essential for our countries. The annual summary reports should urgently address the limited availability and significant challenges to access the necessary tools and support, particularly financial and technical resources.
• Stronger commitments and concrete actions are crucial to ensure that ACE receives the support it requires at both national and international levels, underscoring its indispensable role in our collective climate efforts.

Gender and climate change

• The review of the implementation of the enhanced Lima Work Programme and its Gender Action plan (GAP) must be adopted and concluded during COP 29. It also must be implemented, including through supporting Gender Focal Points on Climate Change in their roles and the means of implementation should be clearly stipulated.
• All countries should commit to implementing the GAP across all of their climate change planning and implementation processes, including NDCs, National Adaptation Plans and Loss and Damage Plans.

End

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