Context

There is an urgent need for ambition and action to harness the land use and agriculture sectors’ potential for climate change mitigation and adaptation. The IPCC Special Report on the impacts of global warming of 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels emphasizes that containing global warning within 1.5 degrees is not possible without the substantial contribution of the agriculture sectors. This is confirmed by the IPCC Special Report on Climate Change and Land, which gives clear guidance on how science, technology and innovative approaches are recommended to be pursued by countries to address climate change for the land sector. 

Nationally determined contributions (NDCs) and National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) are the processes by which countries plan for and communicate their mitigation and adaptation goals and strategies to the global community under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The great push for 2020 NDC enhancement under the Paris Agreement is to accelerate implementation and ramp up ambition at the same time. 

Agriculture is a major priority in 96 percent of all countries’ first cycle of NDCs, under the Paris Agreement. Yet, to date, there is insufficient ambition and implementation of climate actions related to land use and agriculture, as set out in NDCs and NAPs, to keep global warming below the 1.5 °C threshold and enhance adaptive capacity. The evidence makes clear that achieving climate-related goals in land use and agriculture will require nothing less than the transformation of agrifood systems. This is also closely linked with the effort to achieve inclusive and resilient development under the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction and the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.