Let me begin by thanking our hosts – the Government of Azerbaijan, the UN Issue-Based Coalition, and our ILO colleagues for offering this 2-day dialogues platform. 

The opportunity for Member States to share lessons and jointly advance policy options for just green and circular transition is both timely and strategic.

UNDP is pleased to have been a member of PAGE – the UN Partnership for Action on Green Economy – for the past 10 years. 

Last year PAGE updated its strategy to better respond to growing country demand for integrated technical support to transform their economies towards greener, more circular pathways in line with the commitments to the goals of the 2030 Agenda, the Paris Agreement, the Global Biodiversity Framework, Land Degradation neutrality targets, and other Environmental Agreements. 

NDCs, as sovereign and politically backed pledges, are one of the strongest tools available to integrate climate and nature with national development priorities, plans, and investments. 

National ownership of NDCs gives them the power to transition economies, advance ambitious climate action and drive national sustainable development priorities.

Through the UNDP Climate Promise, we have successfully supported more than 80 percent of developing countries to put forward more ambitious climate pledges. 

Next year, member states will submit a new generation of NDCs. 

These NDCs 3.0 – together with NBSAPs - must help to transform the economies of the future and drive a just transition. 

Given the scale and the urgency of the ask, at the request of the UN Secretary General, UNDP now leads the UN System’s coordinated offer to help countries align their NDCs with the Paris Agreement goals through our updated Climate Promise 2025.

We also recognize that there is no stable climate without a stable natural environment.

UNDP is committed to strengthening integrated, nature-positive approaches as central to our support to the achievement of the Paris Agreement goals and ensuring just green and circular transitions. 

We are doing this through 3 strategic objectives:  

• Strengthening policy coherence through integrated, digitally optimized and coordinated approaches to development of NDCs, NAPs and NBSAPs and increasing nature-positive approaches in the 3^rd generation of NDCs;
• Unleashing “twin win” finance that delivers on climate and nature such as carbon markets, biodiversity credits and financing plans, within the umbrella of integrated national financing frameworks (INNFs) and development financing; and
• Delivering integrated impact on the ground through portfolios in key sectors that achieve double or triple wins in terms of climate, biodiversity and social benefits.  

Driven by the twin engines of UNDP’s environmental commitments: the Nature Pledge and Climate Promise, UNDP is set to help align US$ 1 trillion of finance with the SDGs by 2025. 

To accelerate and scale up sustainable climate action and economic transformation, UNDP and our peer PAGE Agencies emphasize the role of horizontal learning and South-South and triangular cooperation spearheaded by todays’ dialogue. 

Let me close by reiterating UNDP’s commitment to work with Member States, our sister agencies, and all partners to translate our high-ambition global goals into transformation country action for People and Planet.

Thank you.