The Secretary-General welcomes the submission of national climate action plans (Intended Nationally Determined Contributions or INDCs) by 147 countries, accounting for over 85 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions. The submission of INDCs at the 1 October milestone provides a solid foundation for a universal and meaningful climate change agreement in Paris this December. 

The Secretary-General welcomes these INDCs as a positive first step. He calls on countries to include provisions in a Paris agreement that will enable them to regularly review and strengthen the ambition level of their national commitments in line with science. A Paris agreement must be a turning point, and send a loud and clear signal to citizens and the private sector that the transformation of the global economy is inevitable, beneficial, and already underway.

The Secretary-General encourages all countries that have not already done so to submit their INDCs before the 21st Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP21) in Paris.