Türkiye is increasingly assuming a leadership role in regional climate action while making notable contributions to global efforts, a senior United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) official said, ahead of the country hosting the COP31 climate summit in 2026.
Meral Mungan Arda, UNDP Türkiye's climate change and environment portfolio manager, delivered the remarks at the "Awareness Raising Conference on Climate Action in Türkiye After COP30," which was held recently in Istanbul as part of UNDP Türkiye's EU-funded Partnership for Local Climate Action Project, with the Directorate of Climate Change serving as the final beneficiary.
Arda told Anadolu that the COP30 summit in November 2025 in Belem, Brazil, showed that existing national climate commitments are insufficient to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to levels consistent with global targets, even if fully implemented.
She pointed out that on the 10th anniversary of the Paris Agreement, the world is still far away from limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, stressing the importance of moving from planning to action.
Climate finance was one of the central themes at COP30, Arda said, noting that funding remains critical for both emissions mitigation and adaptation to climate impacts.
"Financing needs for both mitigating greenhouse gas emissions and adapting to climate change remain a top priority. As we head toward COP31, these issues are likely to take center stage in Türkiye as well," she said.
She cited progress on the New Collective Quantified Goal on Climate Finance, which was agreed upon at COP29 and advanced at COP30. The goal commits developed countries to mobilise at least $300 billion annually from public sources by 2035 while increasing total climate finance flows, including private funding, to $1.3 trillion per year to support developing countries.
Arda said one of the core objectives of the EU Partnership project is to activate climate action at the local level, stressing that both mitigation and adaptation require strong and coordinated agendas.
Reflecting on COP30, she said the summit underscored the continued importance of multilateral cooperation despite shifting global dynamics.
"Türkiye is a strong player in climate action. We observe that Türkiye has taken on a leadership role in regional climate efforts. Türkiye’s contributions in this area are highly significant," she said.
She added: "The fact that COP31 will be hosted in Türkiye excites us greatly and makes us very happy, as it provides an opportunity to share these contributions with the world and inspire other countries."
The Conference of the Parties (COP) is the supreme decision-making body of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), which has met annually since 1995 to assess progress and negotiate global climate action.
The 31st session is scheduled to be held in Türkiye in 2026, primarily in Antalya, with nearly 200 countries expected to attend discussions on emissions targets, adaptation measures, climate finance, and carbon-market rules under the Paris Agreement framework.
