The Inclusive Forum on Carbon Mitigation Approaches (IFCMA) is the OECD’s flagship initiative designed to help optimise the global impact of emissions reduction efforts around the world through better data and information sharing, evidence-based mutual learning and inclusive multilateral dialogue. It brings together all relevant policy perspectives from a diverse range of countries from around the world, participating on an equal footing basis, to take stock of and consider the effectiveness of different carbon mitigation approaches.
Global co-operation on climate
Climate change is a global threat with increasingly evident impacts across the world. Countries face distinct challenges and will pursue various approaches to addressing the climate challenge and strategies to limit global warming to 1.5°C. The OECD supports enhanced co‑operation and co‑ordination of climate efforts at the global level through its multidisciplinary policy analysis, expertise in data monitoring, and its convening power.
Key messages
The Climate Change Expert Group (CCXG) provides technical support to the international climate change negotiations while contributing to efforts to implement the Paris Agreement. The CCXG holds regular forums and other events that bring together government delegates and experts from a wide range of countries to engage constructively on key issues, enhance understanding and help to move the international negotiation process forward . The CCXG also undertakes impartial analysis and develops technical papers to inform discussions among countries on relevant topics in the international climate negotiations. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the International Energy Agency (IEA) jointly support CCXG activities.
The Carbon Market Platform (CMP) is an initiative led by the G7 countries which aims to promote global co-operation on carbon pricing. By putting a price on greenhouse gas emissions, countries can drive economically efficient mitigation, both domestically and internationally. Making carbon pricing work is technically and politically challenging but countries can co-operate to find the best solutions. The OECD supports this co-operation as Secretariat to the CMP, by providing targeted analysis and organising strategic dialogues.
Context
International co-operation is spurring climate action
After the adoption of the Paris Agreement in 2015, climate action in policies related to international co-operation increased, mostly driven by growth in international co-ordination and enhanced provision of climate data under the UNFCCC. The increase in international climate action observed after 2020 can be mostly attributed to:
- the Arrangement on Officially Supported Export Credits, in which participants agreed to end the support for unabated coal power plants
- a joint commitment forged at COP26 in 2021 that committed signatories to “align international public support towards the clean energy transition and phase out unabated fossil fuels”
- the launch of the pilot phase of the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA)
IFCMA aims to ensure co‑ordinated mitigation efforts through an inclusive multilateral dialogue
Consistent with the principles of the multilateral climate policy architecture as set out in the Paris Agreement, countries use or plan to use a widely varied set of emissions reduction policies – both price‑based and non‑price‑based – as tailored to different national circumstances. To achieve the shared global objective of net zero emissions, the key challenge is to optimise the combined global impact of all these individual emissions reduction efforts. This is what the IFCMA helps to facilitate through data and information sharing, mutual learning and inclusive multilateral dialogue.
