Countries are rethinking industrial sector actions in their climate pledges

By Sarbojit Pal, Program Manager, Global Matchmaking Platform Secretariat

This article is part of the Global Matchmaking Platform’s Insight Series: Unlocking a New Industrial Age.

With COP30 behind us, it’s time to take stock of what was achieved and focus on delivering the commitments made. As different constituencies shape the climate discourse and debate the outcomes from Belém, we have been trying to unpack the commitments that countries have made on industrial actions. How ready are they planning to turn these pledges into action? And crucially, which governments are already moving ahead with the industrial transition that is urgently needed?

Figure 1 NDC submissions as of 27th November 2025

Industry is increasingly seen as a priority in NDCs

According to the latest NDCs, countries are definitively shifting their emissions reductions strategies towards industry. While earlier pledges focused on sectors such as energy, transport and buildings, the new NDC 3.0 cycle shows a marked rise in references to industrial actions.

NDC-Industry Analysis published by UNIDO’s Net Zero Partnership for Industrial Decarbonization and UNDP Climate Promise with the Global Matchmaking Platform. This analysis is based on 67 NDC submissions as of 30 October 2025.

As per the NDC Insights Series report, 20 percent of countries added a new mitigation sector in their submissions: Industrial Processes and Product Use (IPPU). The explainer published at COP30 shows almost all of the parties who submitted their NDCs recognized industry as a priority sector, with 72% also including quantitative targets for industry. Often referred to as “hard to abate”, but essential to achieving global climate goals noting that they are responsible for 21 percent of global emissions, it is welcome to note that governments are prioritizing actions to reduce emissions from these sectors. 

These efforts were reinforced by the launch of the Belém Declaration on Global Green Industrialization at COP30, putting forward a shared framework for coordination and action to accelerate industrial transformation, complementing the Activation Groups put forward by the Presidency focused on industry that seemed to be heavily subscribed by governments and non-government stakeholders alike.

Emerging and Developing Economies show strongest ambitions for industrial actions within their NDCs

Forming the largest block, it is no surprise that more than three-quarters of the countries that submitted revised NDCs by COP30 are Emerging Markets and Developing Economies (EMDEs). But what is interesting is that almost all of them have indicated varying levels of industrial sector actions within their NDCs.

For instance, more than 70% of the submissions from Africa included quantitative objectives for industrial actions, while 100% Arab states and more than 80% from Asia and the Pacific had industrial measures listed. Responsible for 45% of global GDP and 60% of global growth since 2000, these are the countries where demand for industrial products will rise fastest. They also face mounting pressures of protectionism, geopolitical fragmentation, high debt, demographic shifts, amid the escalating impacts of climate change. And yet, these emerging and developing countries are indicating industrial transformation as a priority for meeting our collective climate goals.

This moment offers a rare opportunity. EMDEs can leapfrog high-emission pathways and build climate-aligned industries while simultaneously securing competitiveness, production capacity and access to international markets. If supported and well-coordinated, their actions to enable this industrial transition could be transformative, echoing the global clean energy shift and help unlock the beginnings of a new industrial age that could benefit all. 

How countries are putting forward industrial decarbonisation actions in practice

Each country is taking a different approach to shape their future industrial pathways.

Peru’s NDC 3.0 sets out a five-step plan to transform its manufacturing and domestic trade sectors into sustainable, competitive and low-emissions pathways. It begins with a sectoral diagnosis, followed by actions to adopt cleaner fuels for industry, tackling emissions from cement, their largest manufacturing sector, public–private procurement commitments, and new financial mechanisms and incentives. Although industry represents only 6% of Peru’s emissions, the NDC signals a proactive and ambitious approach to industrial decarbonisation.

Thailand’s revised NDC shows a strong push to scale up mitigation in its energy and industrial sectors. The country shifts from percentage targets to absolute emissions cuts and details the mitigation potential of specific measures: carbon capture for petrochemicals and cement, Limestone Calcined Clay Cement, and fuel switching using ammonia and hydrogen. These actions are expected to reduce more than 12 MtCO₂e between 2030 and 2035, with additional indirect mitigation benefits.

Indonesia is also indicating cement sector decarbonization strategies while introducing ammonia-based plants for reducing their industrial sector emissions. They also propose actions to reduce emissions from the iron and steel sectors. Embedded within their Green Industry regulations, they indicate standards for raw material and energy uses and processes, while ensuring that these industries are sustainable, efficient and make efficient use of resources while balancing their impacts on the environment.

South Africa also conveys a similar message. While not directly outlining specific industrial ‘actions’, they indicate that their industrial policy would be one that pursues socially inclusive green industrialization, and one which “must integrate decarbonization and economic diversification”. The document also makes it clear that South Africa is committed to this transformation, while making sure that it is inclusive, balanced, generates jobs and fosters economic development in the spirit of “competitiveness in a carbon-constrained future”.

Türkiye, the host of COP31, places industrial decarbonisation at the core of its Climate Change Mitigation Strategy and NDC. The country has more than a decade of monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) systems in place, with around half of energy and industrial emissions already monitored, giving it a strong baseline for future reductions and for preparing for border carbon adjustment measures. Türkiye also focuses on supporting small and medium enterprises (SMEs) with finance, skills and technology. From December 2025, a new law on Management of Industrial Emissions will align decarbonisation with cleaner production, with expected benefits for competitiveness, health and local pollution.

Similar patterns are reflected in submissions from Kenya, Morocco, Brazil, Costa-Rica, Indonesia or Uzbekistan where fast-growing economies are showing growing readiness to seize the opportunities of a green industrial transition as an integral to development despite urgent competing needs. Kenya emphasizes energy efficiency, cleaner production and sectoral roadmaps, including new MRV systems and a cement-sector pathway. Morocco is using data tools to link economic and emissions data and inform its 45.5 percent reduction target and prepare sectoral MRV and finance strategies. Brazil is developing industrial decarbonization hubs to support policy frameworks, innovation and investment.

Countries are looking for partnerships to turn industry-related climate pledges into action

Many countries are committed to the industrial transition and starting to act. Industry is finally entering the climate spotlight, but will require significant resources, access to technology and finances to make this transition a reality.

While the fastest growing and developing markets are willing to make this change possible, sustained international cooperation and support will remain essential to fully capture the benefits of this global green industrial transformation. Most NDC submissions from these emerging and fast developing countries recognize this need, highlighting that access to support will determine their success. In the absence of international collaboration, the urgent needs for development might force such countries into unavoidable low-carbon pathways.

The volumes of finance and investments required for these industrial transformations are however significant. Noting that financial and technical assistance for industry decarbonization to these countries have historically been inadequate, substantial efforts will be required to mobilize investments in the short time-period we foresee for these needs e.g. the cement and steel sectors alone will require over $500 billion in the next decade. 

With shrinking development assistance and growing financial and technical requirements, it begets one to question – what will it take for these countries to realize this industrial transition? How will these countries finance low-emission industrial development? What will be the financial models and where will the investment come from? What kind of technologies will be required, and where will those come from? How critical will international cooperation be, and in what form, to achieve these goals put forward in these NDCs?

The Working Group on Green Industry for EMDEs, that announced a Joint Statement and Roadmap at COP30, is aiming to address some of these questions through dialogue and exchange. Comprising of a coalition of countries, from both developing and develop parts of the world, working with key partner organizations like UNIDO, the Climate Investment Funds, and the Alliance for Industrial Decarbonization, the Working Group is offering a unique framework to start actioning on the EMDE commitments.

However, these are still early days. A lot more effort is required to understand the underpinnings of the commitments in their entirety, given their national and local contexts. We, at the Global Matchmaking Platform (GMP), will continue to work with countries to better understand these specific needs for translating ambition into action.