Dubai, 13 December 2023 — COP28 ended with an agreement described by UN Climate Change as marking the “beginning of the end” of the fossil fuel era. Nearly 200 Parties adopted the first Global Stocktake, calling for stronger climate action this decade to keep the 1.5°C goal within reach. The decision recognises that global greenhouse-gas emissions need to fall by 43% by 2030 compared with 2019 levels, while noting that the world is not yet on track to meet the Paris Agreement goals.
The outcome calls for tripling global renewable-energy capacity and doubling improvements in energy efficiency by 2030, accelerating the phase-down of unabated coal power, phasing out inefficient fossil-fuel subsidies and transitioning away from fossil fuels in energy systems in a just, orderly and equitable manner. Parties are also encouraged to submit more ambitious economy-wide climate plans by 2025.
COP28 also operationalised the Loss and Damage Fund, with pledges exceeding USD 700 million, and advanced the Global Goal on Adaptation. Climate finance remained central: the Green Climate Fund reached record pledges of USD 12.8 billion, while additional commitments were announced for funds supporting least-developed countries, adaptation and climate resilience. The Global Stocktake nevertheless stresses that trillions of dollars will be needed to support developing countries and calls for reform of the multilateral financial architecture and new sources of finance.
Around 85,000 participants attended COP28. The conference also advanced implementation of the Paris Agreement’s enhanced transparency framework and confirmed Azerbaijan as host of COP29 in 2024 and Brazil as host of COP30 in 2025. UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell urged governments to turn the commitments into real economic outcomes and to submit stronger nationally determined contributions by early 2025.
