United Nations And Côte d'Ivoire Hold Abidjan-Plateau Climate Dialogue On Energy Transition

Energy transition was at the heart of a national dialogue on climate action held this Tuesday, July 22, 2025 in Abidjan-Plateau, at the initiative of the United Nations system and the Ministry of Environment, Sustainable Development and Ecological Transition.

“Abidjan, July 22, 2025 (AIP) – The energy transition was at the heart of a national dialogue on climate action held this Tuesday, July 22, 2025 in Abidjan-Plateau, at the initiative of the United Nations system and the Ministry of Environment, Sustainable Development and Ecological Transition”

AIP – Agence Ivoirienne de Presse

The event, organized in response to the UN Secretary-General António Guterres' global address, reaffirmed Côte d'Ivoire's commitment to making climate ambition a genuine lever for economic, social and environmental transformation.

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Three major voices spoke: the resident representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Côte d'Ivoire, Ms. Blerta Cela, the UN system resident coordinator, Ms. Hélène N’Garnim-Ganga, and the Minister of Environment, Sustainable Development and Ecological Transition, Mr. Assahoré Konan Jacques.

Ms. Cela said, "This challenge also presents a tremendous opportunity, that of building a more sustainable and more inclusive economy," while Ms. N’Garnim-Ganga said Guterres' address "presents climate ambition not as a constraint, but as a strategic lever for development, justice and growth."

Minister Assahoré Konan Jacques highlighted progress within Côte d'Ivoire's climate strategy, including that the share of renewable energy should reach 45% in the national energy mix by 2030.

He also mentioned structural legal reforms, including the Climate Change Law adopted in June 2025, and the establishment of the Carbon Market Office and a National Climate Agency to strengthen governance architecture.

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The dialogue stressed mobilizing ministries, local authorities, private sector, civil society, women, and youth, with Ms. Cela saying, "No transition will be fair if it does not rely on the whole of society."

The process of revising the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) now includes cross-cutting components such as climate justice, adaptation, youth and gender, with support from UNDP through the Climate Promise initiative funded by Germany and technical partners such as the European Union, Expertise France or GIZ.

Minister Assahoré Konan Jacques framed the moment as a call for solidarity, saying, "This moment of opportunity is also a moment of collective truth," as he urged greater solidarity to ensure equitable access to climate finance, green technologies, and strengthening national capacities.

The Sustainable Development Goals were adopted by all United Nations Member States in September 2015 as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, a 15-year plan to achieve the goals and their related targets.

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El Debate

The SDG Summit, which will take place on September 18–19, 2023 at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, was described as a unique opportunity for the world to shift from crisis to development and achieve decisive progress needed to realize the goals.

In a separate climate policy argument, Bill Hare, CEO of Climate Analytics, said the UN climate process needs ambition and cited Paris Agreement Article 4, where Parties "shall prepare, communicate and maintain successive nationally determined contributions".

Hare added that each new NDC "will represent a progression" beyond the Party’s previous one and "reflect its highest possible ambition," linking the requirement to regularly increasing ambition with implementing the Paris Agreement.

He also warned that without increased ambition, global warming would race beyond the 1.5°C limit, with "catastrophic impacts beginning in the most vulnerable countries" and risks increasing for everyone.