COP30: Least developed countries seek urgent action to keep 1.5°C goal alive

The Least Developed Countries (LDC) group has called on world leaders to take bold and immediate steps to keep the 1.5°C global warming limit within reach.

The call comes as the 30th UN Climate Change Conference (COP30), billed to run from November 10 to 21, gets underway in Belém, Brazil.

Representing 44 of the world’s most climate-vulnerable nations, the group warned that global efforts remain far from sufficient to protect communities already suffering severe climate impacts.

Evans Njewa, chair of the LDC group, said the world has entered a decisive decade for climate action and must not allow the 1.5°C goal to slip away.

Njewa noted that COP30 must deliver a credible roadmap that addresses the gaps in finance, ambition, and implementation.

Antonio Guterres, the UN secretary-general, earlier said that the world has failed to prevent global temperatures from breaching the critical 1.5°C, and that a temporary overshoot is now inevitable.

‘FINANCE MUST MATCH AMBITION’

Ten years after the adoption of the Paris Agreement, the LDCs say the gap between pledges and action continues to widen, leaving poorer nations exposed to worsening droughts, floods, and food insecurity.

The group urged developed countries to deliver on their finance commitments and set clear post-2025 milestones for adaptation funding.

They also called for the tripling of grant-based adaptation finance by 2030 to at least $120 billion annually.

On the new collective quantified goal (NCQG) for climate finance, the LDCs demanded a robust follow-up process under the “Baku to Belém Roadmap”, including a shared definition of climate finance to improve transparency and accountability.

They also expressed support for the inclusion of a new COP agenda item to ensure developed countries meet their legal obligations under Article 9.1 of the Paris Agreement, which requires them to provide financial resources to developing nations.

The LDCs called for the adoption of measurable indicators and the creation of a dedicated technical workstream beyond COP30 to operationalise national adaptation plans (NAPs).

The group welcomed the establishment of the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage (FRLD) under the Barbados Implementation Modalities (BIM), but pressed for “rapid, direct, and effective” disbursement of funds to countries already suffering climate-induced losses.

The group — comprising nations from Africa, Asia-Pacific, and small island states — negotiates as a bloc at UN climate talks.

Despite contributing less than 1 percent of global emissions, LDCs face some of the most devastating consequences of climate change.

At COP30,the group is demanding that global climate action must deliver real finance, faster implementation, and justice for those on the frontlines of the climate crisis.

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This report was produced with support from Sahara Group and the Kaduna state government