Summary

Social protection has a key role to play in achieving climate goals and a just transition through inclusive climate change adaptation, mitigation, and loss and damage response. To fully realise this potential, social protection needs to be incorporated into national climate strategies. The upcoming development of new and updated Nationally Determined Contributions is a critical window of opportunity for countries to embed social protection into climate action going forward.

This brief provides an introduction to the NDCs and the rationale for integrating social protection in them. It also provides practical guidance for ministries and national agencies with a social protection or social security mandate (or those involved in implementing social protection) on how to engage in the process of updating NDCs.