NDCs Library

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Guidelines, tools and resources
to increase transport ambition in the next generation of NDCs

The global emissions of the transport sector are heading in the wrong direction, accounting for the fastest-growing source of emissions around the world. We must change this trend now and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change underlines that a pathway for transport which contributes to maintaining global temperature rise below 1.5°C is possible. Transport enables prosperity and livelihoods. In 2021, the sector contributed 7% (USD 6.8 trillion) of the global gross domestic product and employed 5.6% of the world’s workforce (193 million people). Therefore in this era of climate emergency, it is as important as ever that countries set more ambitious, robust and actionable targets and roadmaps for the decarbonisation, the adaptation to climate change impacts and the resilience of transport and mobility systems – in a just transition.

IT IS NOW OR NEVER

Global greenhouse gas emissions need to peak before 2025, followed by rapid and deep emission reductions throughout 2050 in order to limit global warming to 1.5°C, as assessed by the IPCC. The transport sector accounted for 20.7% of global CO₂ emissions in 2022. Achieving transport pathways that align with the 1.5°C target will require at least a 59% reduction in global transport CO₂ emissions by 2050.

Thus, the NDC 3.0 needs to enhance action on sustainable, low carbon transport. The COP28 Global Stocktake Outcome encourages countries to accelerate the reduction of emissions from road transport on a range of pathways, including through development of infrastructure and rapid deployment of zero- and low-emission vehicles.

Historical emissions from 1950, projected emissions in 2030 based on nationally determined contributions, and emission reductions required by the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

Source: Technical dialogue of the first global stocktake Synthesis report by the co-facilitators on the technical dialogue

Partnership in action on NDCs 3.0

Check out what the transport community is doing

NDC Transport Tracker is a database on ambition, targets and policies in NDCs and Long-Term Strategies.

The GIZ-SLOCAT NDC Transport Tracker pays special attention to the level of ambition of the transport sector in the NDCs with the focus on target-setting, adaptation and resilience in transport and the scope of transport sub-sectors included.

View the Tracker

Five Recommendations to Raise Ambition for Transport in NDCs

As we collectively work to update and raise ambition in the next generation of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs)—the commitments made by each country under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to reduce national emissions and adapt to climate change—we would like to share a set of key recommendations. These build upon SLOCAT’s 2020 recommendations, exploring how countries can scale up transport ambition in their NDCs.

Download our Key Recommendations

Scale up action Accelerate transformation towards energy-efﬁcient and fossil-free transport. (2)

Transports in NDCs 3.0 : An analysis by GIZ and SLOCAT

The year 2025 marks a crucial juncture for advancing sustainable, low-carbon transport. Countries are expected to submit updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) with enhanced 2035 targets, referred to here as third-generation NDCs*. These submissions offer a vital opportunity to accelerate climate action in transport, aligning with national strategies and coordinating efforts across governance levels and sectors. This summary analysis outlines findings from the first 23 third-generation NDCs submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), as of 16 May 2025.

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