A Decade of Paris pact - Only 5% of global climate initiatives achieve goals

A decade after the landmark Paris Agreement, a new analysis by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) reveals that only 5 per cent of global cooperative climate initiatives have achieved their stated objectives, while over one-fifth have stalled or become inactive.

The report, titled “Ten Years of Paris Agreement: A Stocktake of Cooperative Climate Initiatives,” was released at an event commemorating 10 years of the Paris Agreement. It highlights that despite the surge of voluntary multi-actor initiatives involving governments, investors, and civil society, most lack measurable targets, budgetary allocations, and accountability structures essential for sustained progress.

The Paris agreement - Significance and goals

The Paris Agreement, adopted by 195 countries at COP21 in Paris in December 2015 and entering into force in November 2016, marked a historic milestone in global climate policy. It unites nearly all nations in a common goal: to combat climate change through mitigation, adaptation, and financial support.

Its key goals include: Limiting global temperature rise well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels, with efforts to limit it to 1.5°C. Enhancing climate resilience and adaptive capacity worldwide and aligning financial flows with low-emission, climate-resilient development pathways.

Since its adoption, nearly all UN member states, including major economies such as India, the UK, the US, and the UAE, have joined the agreement, although a few countries, such as Libya, Iran, and Yemen, have yet to ratify it.

Global climate initiatives

Between 2015 and 2025, more than 475 cooperative initiatives were launched, engaging over 40,000 entities from local governments and multilateral organisations to private investors and businesses. However, a detailed analysis of 203 initiatives revealed that more than 53 per cent had no clearly defined targets, and only 28 per cent had a dedicated budget.

"Out of the 203 initiatives, around 5 per cent have accomplished their stated goals. Over a fifth of all initiatives are either stalled or inactive, with their status indeterminate or no updates since their initial announcements," the report noted.

Only 39 per cent of initiatives demonstrated continuous engagement, while 32 per cent showed sporadic updates with little evidence of progress. Initiatives with well-defined targets, organisational structures, and monitoring mechanisms consistently outperformed those without such frameworks.

Focus areas and regional participation

Mitigation, or the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, remains the predominant focus, accounting for 36 per cent of initiatives. Adaptation-only initiatives, addressing water scarcity, agricultural resilience, or forest protection, constitute just 21 per cent. Land use and forests emerged as key cross-cutting areas linking mitigation and adaptation, representing over 30 per cent of initiatives.

Loss and damage-focused initiatives, aimed at tackling irreversible climate impacts, only gained prominence at COP27, reflecting ongoing gaps in global climate justice and resilience efforts. Initiatives supporting Means of Implementation (MoI) encompassing finance, technology transfer, and capacity building have surged since COP25, now representing 32 per cent of initiatives, though over a third still lack clear thematic focus.

Thematic integration is expanding, with gender, health, youth-focused, and technology-driven initiatives becoming more common since COP28 in Dubai and COP29 in Baku, highlighting efforts to make climate action more inclusive and innovation-led.

Despite claims of global participation, less than a third of initiatives focus exclusively on the Global South in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, often being combined with Global North participation. India has emerged as a leading contributor from the Global South, spearheading eight initiatives and mobilising an average of 47 countries per coalition, matching engagement levels typically seen with COP presidencies. Alongside India, the UAE and Azerbaijan were highlighted as key Global South contributors. Among Global North countries, the UK led 33 initiatives, followed by the UAE with 18, which also hosted COP28, the conference with the highest number of new announcements at 46.

COP meetings - Recent and upcoming

The Paris Agreement’s progress is reviewed annually at the UN Climate Change Conferences (COPs). The most recent meeting, COP29, was held in Baku, Azerbaijan, in November 2024. COP30 is scheduled to take place in Belém, Brazil, from November 10–21, 2025, bringing together global leaders, policymakers, and stakeholders to advance climate action.

Challenges and Recommendations

Despite expectations that 50-80 per cent of mitigation and adaptation efforts occur at the subnational level, local government participation remains low, appearing in only one-fifth of initiatives. Engagement by multilateral development banks and private investors is also limited, despite their crucial role in mobilising climate finance.

CEEW urged COP presidencies to institutionalise cooperative climate initiatives and ensure continuity beyond annual summits using mechanisms such as the Circle of Presidencies. The report also recommends establishing transparent reporting systems through platforms like the Global Climate Action Portal (GCAP) to monitor progress effectively.