2025 Climate and Clean Air Coalition Ministerial: Accelerating Action on Super Pollutants for a Resilient Planet

Ethiopia affirms its strong commitment to the Climate and Clean Air Coalition and to the urgent global effort to reduce short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs). For climate-vulnerable countries like Ethiopia, tackling SLCPs is not an option; it is a necessity for protecting lives, strengthening food security, and accelerating sustainable development. Ethiopia is implementing bold and transformative national climate actions, such as the Green Legacy Initiative, championed by H.E. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (PhD), which has planted more than 40 billion seedlings over the past six years. This unprecedented ecosystem restoration effort enhances carbon sequestration, clean air, and climate-resilient livelihoods.  

Ethiopia is also advancing integrated solutions to reduce SLCPs across key sectors: agriculture, waste management, energy, and transport. We are executing nature-positive corridor development and major riverside restoration projects across the country, which enhance urban resilience and reduce pollution. Ethiopia has banned the import of fossil fuel vehicles and is rapidly expanding electric mobility by scaling up electric vehicles, while accelerating climate-smart agriculture and renewable energy sources to improve food security, reduce emissions, and strengthen community resilience. 

In order to significantly scale up and accelerate the efforts to reduce SLCPs across sectors, Ethiopia requires strengthened partnerships, improved access to technology, and climate finance. We therefore reaffirm our strong commitment to working closely with the CCAC and its partners to deliver practical, high-impact, and community-centered solutions.  

Spanish

El vicepresidente de la República, Stephan Brunner Neibig, comentó que el sector agrícola de Costa Rica emite alrededor del 27% de los gases de efecto invernadero del país, principalmente por los residuos de productos de exportación como café, banano, piña y caña de azúcar.

"Una solución clave es aprovechar esos residuos para producir biogás y biometano, lo cual no solo reduciría las emisiones, sino que también ayudaría a resolver el problema del diésel en nuestra matriz energética. Esta es la belleza de este proyecto: abordar dos grandes desafíos con una sola solución”.

English

The Vice President of Costa Rica, Stephan Brunner Neibig, commented that the country's agricultural sector emits approximately 27% of its greenhouse gases, primarily from the waste generated by export products such as coffee, bananas, pineapples, and sugarcane.

"A key solution is to utilize this waste to produce biogas and biomethane, which would not only reduce emissions but also help address the diesel problem in our energy mix. This is the beauty of this project: tackling two major challenges with a single solution.”

Without fast-action to cut SLCPs, there would be dangerous air pollution responsible for global warming that may cross the to 2°C threshold by mid-century, that will contribute to significant detrimental health and environmental impacts, including reductions in crop yields and the productivity of plants through decreases in photosynthetic abilities 

Since joining the CCAC in 2012, Ghana launched a National Action Plan for Short-Lived Climate Pollutants, heightened the ambition of our Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) with the inclusion of SLCPs, and kick-started vital development efforts on climate and air quality affirming the country’s resolve to address and lessen the potential impact of air pollution and at the same time improves air quality.

It is an honour to join you at the 2025 Climate and Clean Air Coalition Ministerial (CCAC) Meeting here at the UNEP Headquarters in Nairobi. Nigeria values its long-standing collaboration with the CCAC and deeply appreciates the Coalition’s sustained support to our national efforts on short-lived climate pollutant mitigation. We also welcome the recent CCAC Country Accelerator support launched at COP30 which will significantly strengthen Nigeria’s capacity to scale up integrated action to reduce super pollutants across key sectors. This partnership continues to play a pivotal role in advancing our climate ambition and improving the health and well-being of our people.

Esteemed participants, our discussion today on how integrated climate and clean air action can unlock economic and health gains is central to Nigeria’s national priorities. Integrated action remains one of the most effective pathways to achieving development while protecting the planet. By addressing short-lived climate pollutants such as methane, black carbon, and hydrofluorocarbons, we reduce near-term warming and improve air quality. This dual impact helps cut healthcare costs and contributes to a healthier, more productive population.

Economically, Nigeria recognises that transitioning to cleaner technologies and sustainable practices creates green jobs, drives innovation, and strengthens resilience, especially for vulnerable communities. Our national experience, including cleaner cookstoves, methane mitigation in the oil and gas sector, and investments in sustainable transport, demonstrates that well-targeted interventions deliver climate benefits alongside significant socio-economic gains. These efforts raise household incomes, attract private capital, and reduce losses from pollution and climate-induced impacts.

To scale up these benefits and to help bring the 1.5°C goal within reach, Nigeria emphasises the need to deliberately link climate action with immediate development outcomes. This requires stronger collaboration among environment, health, energy, and finance sectors; integrated policies that maximise co-benefits; and increased investment in accessible, community-level solutions that improve daily life while reducing emissions. Equally, raising public awareness on the health and economic value of clean air is essential. When citizens understand that climate action improves the air their families breathe, political support grows and implementation accelerates.

For Nigeria, strengthening monitoring, reporting, and verification systems is vital for demonstrating progress and attracting climate finance. We continue to align our Nationally Determined Contribution and Energy Transition Plan with actions that promote clean air, green jobs, and long-term economic resilience.

Nigeria is dedicated to advancing integrated climate and clean air solutions, expanding renewable energy, promoting sustainable transport, strengthening waste management systems, and scaling up actions that cut emissions while safeguarding public health.

The Philippines extends our sincere gratitude to the Climate and Clean Air Coalition for confirming our election as a CCAC Board member until 2027. We are very much honored by this trust. This is not a beginning, but a renewal. The Philippines has long been an active collaborator of the CCAC, and today we are building on that strong foundation with renewed energy. 

Just recently, with CCAC’s continuing support, we finalized our national SLCP Action Plan, which has already informed key elements in our NDC updating–on methane and other pollutants, whose mitigation offers both climate and air-quality results.  

We intend to ride this momentum, and we hope, that others in our region will join us as we assume the Chairmanship of ASEAN in 2026. We believe Southeast Asia shall be a driver of ambition. The “Clean Air and Climate Solutions for ASEAN” assessment by UNEP and CCAC reminds us that coordinated SLCP action offers enormous benefits. We also welcome the launch of the CCAC Super-Pollutant Country Action Accelerator, which already includes Indonesia and Cambodia among its first partner countries. Their participation is an encouraging signal that ASEAN is moving collectively towards stronger SLCP mitigation. The Philippines is committed to working alongside our neighbors to increase participation, expand implementation, and accelerate regional progress. 

On the background document on the economic case for faster action, we welcome the clear evidence it presents: that the benefits of early action on SLCPs both in human health and avoided climate damages, far outweigh the costs. The framing of implementation barriers and the enabling environment is particularly relevant to countries like ours, where institutional coordination and social acceptance remain critical determinants of success. These insights strengthen our conviction that investment in enabling policies is just as important as investment in technology. 

Excellencies, the Philippines, and Southeast Asia more broadly, stands at the frontline of climate impacts. Typhoons are growing stronger, droughts more punishing, and the cost to our communities, our ecosystems, and our economy continues to intensify. At COP30, we once again emphasized that climate justice is not an abstract principle. It is a daily reality for millions of our people. We therefore call for urgent, transformative climate action: action that confronts super-pollutants and accelerates mitigation. 

The African Group of Negotiators (AGN) welcomes this opportunity to reaffirm our collective commitment to reducing climate super pollutants and advancing solutions that protect people and the environment.

As we approach the 10th anniversary of the Kigali Amendment in 2026, its adoption in Kigali, Rwanda, stands as a reminder of Africa’s leadership in advancing international climate and cooling policy. The Kigali Amendment represents one of the most significant climate measures to date: Reducing HFCs can avoid nearly 0.1 °C of warming by 2050 and up to 0.5 °C by the end of the century. The initial HFC phasedown schedule in the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol will capture about 90 percent of this. Parallel efforts to enhance the energy efficiency of air conditioners and other cooling appliances during the HFC phasedown can double the climate benefits by 2050. 

Through the Dakar Declaration, we - the 54 African countries now represented in Montreal Protocol meetings by the AGN based in Senegal - reminded the world that the work to end the dumping of inefficient, high-GWP cooling equipment is far from complete. The Declaration builds directly on Montreal Protocol Decision XXXV/13, which recognizes that addressing dumping requires action by both exporting and importing countries – a shared responsibility. Environmental dumping is now a global crisis that studies have shown affects not only Africa, but also vulnerable developing countries across Southeast Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean. 

At UNEA7, as the UN Environment Assembly considers governance approaches for chemicals, waste, pollution, and other emerging challenges, there is a critical opportunity to elevate climate super pollutants (including HFCs, methane, and nitrous oxide) and link them to both climate and nature outcomes. 

African countries welcome other importing countries joining the collective effort to support local prosperity and look forward to engaging with exporting countries under multilateral and bilateral venues, including those convened by the Climate & Clean Air Coalition.

In my capacity as the Minister of Environment and Climate Change of Somalia, Somalia is proud to join the Climate and Clean Air Coalition at a critical moment when the world must accelerate action on short-lived climate pollutants to protect both people and the planet. As one of the countries most vulnerable to climate shocks and air-quality impacts, Somalia sees clean air action as central to safeguarding public health, building climate resilience, and supporting sustainable development. 

Through our updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC 3.0), National Adaptation Plan, and forthcoming National Air Quality Management Policy, Somalia is strengthening its commitment to reduce methane, black carbon, hydrofluorocarbons, and other pollutants that threaten human health and amplify climate change. We are expanding community-based monitoring, improving waste and energy management, and investing in better climate-finance coordination to support implementation. 

We call on the global community to scale up predictable, accessible climate finance to enable least-developed countries like Somalia to take bold and transformative action. Collaboration through the CCAC is essential to ensure that clean-air solutions deliver immediate health benefits while helping us stay on course to meet global climate goals. 

Somalia stands ready to work with CCAC partners to advance cleaner air, healthier communities, and a safer climate for all.

AirQo proudly reaffirms its partnership with the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC). We celebrate the continued progress by CCAC partners in advancing clean air actions across Africa and globally, building on the momentum of the UNEA 6/10 Resolution on regional cooperation for air quality.  

We remain committed to advancing regional capacity for evidence-based air quality actions across Africa, particularly through scaling access to local data. Since the 2024 Ministerial, AirQo’s open data infrastructure has expanded to benefit more than 19 African cities in East, West, Central, and Southern Africa. Our open-access digital platforms leverage AI and advanced analytics, effectively democratizing data access and equipping decision-makers and the public with the evidence needed to mitigate air pollution. 

AirQo is also proud to serve as the secretariat for the Africa Clean Air Network (AfriCAN), an Africa-led network on air quality. The network is bringing together organisations across the science-policy spectrum, and through its annual CLEAN-Air Forum, enabling cross-border exchange of knowledge and ideas, towards science-driven actions. 

The recent Cape Town Ministerial Declaration on Air Quality underscores the importance of broad-based cross-border collaborations. As Africa accelerates regional efforts, AirQo reiterates its commitment to championing Africa-led initiatives and the aspirations of the UNEA 6/10 resolution. We welcome the CCAC’s growing support for the Africa Clean Air Programme, and call for increased investment in local data infrastructure, capacity strengthening for local actions, and sustained avenues for regional collaboration. 

Prioritizing the mitigation of short‑lived climate pollutants (SLCPs) is one of the most essential actions to, as set out in the Belém political package, “emphasize the inherent connection between efforts to limit global warming to 1.5 °C and the pursuit of just transition pathways.” Reducing SLCPs delivers multiple benefits — for public health, for the climate, and, crucially, for the livelihoods of vulnerable communities. Cutting SLCP emissions is not a matter of cutting‑edge technology. 

Most mitigation solutions already exist and are widely used in developed regions; the challenge lies in their under-deployment and underfunding in developing regions. This is not only an environmental issue, but a development issue. 

The Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC) plays a central role in closing this gap. The Institute of Global Decarbonization Progress(iGDP) stands ready to partner with CCAC to promote South–South cooperation by strengthening capacity-building, raising awareness, and facilitating the deployment of technologies and expertise. 

The Climate & Clean Air Coalition’s (CCAC’s) planet-saving mission to slow near-term warming by cutting super climate pollutants helps the world avoid a cascade of irreversible and catastrophic tipping points. At its 2025 Ministerial Meeting, convened during the 7th session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA7), the CCAC underscored its role as one of the world’s most important multilateral coalitions with a unique ability to translate super-pollutant climate pledges into action. Also, the CCAC and its State and non-State partners highlighted their work at the intersection of climate mitigation and air quality, providing numerous examples of how their super-pollutant mitigation efforts deliver significant co-benefits for air quality and public health.

IGSD has been a CCAC non-State NGO partner since the CCAC’s inception, of which IGSD was a part of. The CCAC’s work aligns with IGSD’s mission, which aims to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 °C—or, at a minimum, keep this temperature guardrail in sight by limiting overshoot and returning to a safe temperature as quickly as possible. IGSD is also committed to ensuring that climate commitments are fully implemented, accelerated where possible, and translated into measurable super pollutant emission reductions.

IGSD is honored to serve on the CCAC Board as a non-State partner, to help update the CCAC’s non-State partner processes, and to organize the inaugural CCAC non-State partner NGO consultation to be announced and convened in 2026.

Action on Short-Lived Climate Pollutants (SLCPs) is critical to meeting global climate goals. As a global poverty and inequality organization, Oxfam is particularly concerned by the unique impacts of SLCPs on communities’ health, safety, and food security, alongside the threats posed to them by broader climate impacts. Communities living in poverty around the world are disproportionately on the frontlines of the climate crisis even as they have done the least to cause it. Oxfam’s flagship Climate and Inequality Report makes clear that the wealthiest 1% contribute as much emissions as the poorest two-thirds of humanity. Combatting the climate crisis means combatting inequality.  

We applaud the Climate and Clean Air Coalition’s (CCAC) efforts to address climate and inequality. Its new role providing Secretariat services to the Global Methane Pledge is an important step toward increased coordination and ambition on methane. It is critical that states meaningfully engage frontline communities and civil society as they develop Methane Action Plans and incorporate methane mitigation measures into their 2025 updated National Determined Contributions (NDCs). Such engagement not only bolsters transparency and shifts power, but leads to better policies that truly address the needs of communities most impacted by methane pollution.  

Women and marginalized genders are among those most impacted. We welcome the CCAC’s Gender Strategy and opportunities to contribute to its successful implementation. Communities on the frontlines of SLCP pollution face incredible health burdens, shouldered by unpaid and underpaid care workers. Oxfam is dedicated to advancing climate justice in a way that strengthens the care economy, in partnership with feminist, women’s rights, and frontline organizations.  

SLCP mitigation must happen in concert with a full, fair, fast, funded fossil fuel phase out. To meet the urgency of this moment, we need to move past voluntary commitments, make rich polluters pay, and facilitate a just energy transition toward a livable future for all.