A report issued by a UN-convened expert group finds that tackling the climate and sustainable development crises together could unlock efficiencies at scale and reduce government spending needed to address these crises by nearly 40 per cent.

Harnessing Climate and SDG Synergy: Quantifying the Benefits, the third global report prepared by the independent Expert Group on Climate and SDG Synergy, was launched today ahead of the Climate Summit during the UN General Assembly High-Level Week.

It comes at a time when progress towards achieving climate targets under the Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is far off track. The finance gap for SDG action exceeds USD 4 trillion annually and over USD 6 trillion annually for climate action.

“The climate and development crises are not separate – they are deeply interconnected, and so must be their solutions,” UN Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs Li Junhua and Executive Secretary of UNFCCC Simon Stiell stated jointly in the preface of the report, representing the two agencies that co-convene the expert group.

Declaring that the report shows that “we have the solutions and roadmap” for a more integrated approach, they issued a call for cooperation across ministries and sectors – for a whole-of-society approach. “Let us seize this moment of opportunity for transformative change, for people and planet,” they concluded.

The expert report comes at a crucial time: 2025 presents a critical window to maximize the potential of synergistic action, as countries prepare new national climate commitments under the Paris Agreement, some of which are being announced at the Climate Summit. These Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) can be a key mechanism, the report states, to align climate action with sustainable development and the SDGs. Citing two examples of co-benefits, the report urges that NDCs should include action on biodiversity and recognize the positive health impacts in cities of reducing emissions and air pollution.

The report suggests that tailoring synergistic strategies to country-specific development and climate objectives ensures that investments are targeted where they are needed most, and that climate action delivers multiple social, economic and environmental benefits. Currently, “fragmentation across governance, finance and policy continues to hinder progress,” the report states, “necessitating reforms for effective and inclusive action.”

Stating that private sector investment is vital, the report makes the argument that by aligning incentives, demonstrating economic value and reducing risk through synergistic action, governments can leverage private funding to magnify the impacts.

Growing Evidence

The report’s conclusions are based on statistical modelling, using the cost of meeting the greenhouse gas emission reduction objective of fulfilling all NDCs as well as achieving certain development targets measured by the Human Development Index. By contrast, synergistic allocation of funds could reduce total government spending by up to 37 per cent, according to the modelling.

The expert group intends to broaden the analysis in future reports to add other benefits, including social values, such as lives saved.

The report expands the growing body of evidence on the clear benefits of synergistic policies and action, building on the expert group’s global reports the past two years, as well as detailed thematic reports examining specific synergies that can yield major impact. It cites examples showing that:
Nature-based climate solutions such as conserving biodiversity and restoring ecosystems could deliver up to 37 per cent of cost-effective CO2 mitigation by 2030;

City policies such as fossil-fuel phase-out, and encouraging cycling and walking as well as plant-based diets can deliver major co-benefits for climate and health;

Integrating disaster insurance into development plans can boost resilience, considering that in Africa only 0.5 per cent of disaster losses are insured, and each 1 per cent rise in coverage brings countries 5.8 per cent closer to achieving the SDGs.

Political momentum on climate and SDG synergies has been building, including through annual conferences, with increasing recognition of the need to break down the silos that are holding back progress urgently needed. The recommendations in the report will continue to be advanced in various forums, including at Climate COP30 coming up in Brazil in November.

The 17-member expert group, drawn from diverse backgrounds and research institutions, is co-led by Luis Gomez Echeverri (International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis) and Heidi Hackmann (CREST, Stellenbosch University).