Enviro News Asia, Bonn — International collaboration has played a decisive role in accelerating global efforts to strengthen climate transparency under the Paris Agreement, particularly in supporting developing countries in implementing the Enhanced Transparency Framework (ETF).
This progress was highlighted by UN Climate Change in an update released on 27 January 2026, emphasizing the importance of transparent climate action and support as a foundation for effective international climate cooperation.
Transparency enables countries to identify priorities, assess progress toward Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), refine climate policies, and prepare more ambitious future commitments. It also strengthens mutual trust among Parties by demonstrating measurable progress in implementing the Paris Agreement.
For donors and support providers, transparency improves clarity on where financial, technical, and capacity-building assistance is most needed. Continued international support remains essential to enable developing countries to participate effectively in the ETF.
The timely submission of the first Biennial Transparency Reports (BTRs), particularly by developing countries, has been largely driven by sustained international assistance. As countries move forward with preparing their first and second BTRs, coordination among supporting agencies has become increasingly important to ensure alignment with national needs.
A central role in this coordination is played by the ETF Group of Friends, an informal network of approximately 35 organizations established to facilitate communication, information exchange, and joint action among transparency support providers.
Since its establishment in 2016, the network has convened more than 45 coordination meetings at global, regional, and national levels, including 24 meetings organized by UN Climate Change. Over the past 18 months, regional and subgroup leads have conducted an additional 21 regional coordination meetings.
Key partners involved in these efforts include the Capacity-building Initiative for Transparency–Global Support Programme (CBIT-GSP), the Greenhouse Gas Management Institute (GHGMI), the Initiative for Climate Action Transparency (ICAT), the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES), the Partnership on Transparency in the Paris Agreement (PATPA), and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
These coordination mechanisms have shifted engagement from basic information-sharing toward joint planning and in-country collaboration. Regular exchanges help map ongoing activities, identify synergies, and reduce duplication, thereby strengthening the coherence and effectiveness of support at the national level.
The network also contributed to six mandated ETF support and first BTR workshops held in 2024 and 2025. These workshops brought together developing countries, the Global Environment Facility (GEF), implementing agencies, and other partners to exchange experiences and improve access to transparency-related support.
Looking ahead, regional and subgroup leads are expanding engagement with national and regional stakeholders to ensure follow-up actions translate into concrete results. UN Climate Change will continue to facilitate global coordination, link regional outcomes to policy discussions, and promote integrated planning.
Through strengthened international cooperation, the ETF Group of Friends continues to support a coherent global approach to transparency, reinforcing collective efforts to track climate progress and implement the Paris Agreement effectively. (*)
