The Power of Cities: Harnessing Low-carbon Urbanization for Climate Action
Extensive systemic transformations of urban areas in rapidly urbanizing developing countries can serve as a powerful driver for advancing low-carbon urban growth and supporting global decarbonization goals. Since most urban infrastructure and land use in rapidly urbanizing countries—particularly in Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA)—will be developed over the next few decades, urban policy decisions made today will have long-lasting implications for cities’ future contributions to global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
Although current GHG emissions from cities in developing countries remain relatively low compared to those in high-income and upper-middle-income countries (HICs and UMICs), the anticipated scale of urban growth makes it crucial to pivot away from high-emission trajectories. Pursuing low-carbon urbanization pathways is essential to prevent locking in carbon-intensive development over the long term.
This report underscores the urgent need to integrate low-carbon urbanization priorities into the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and Long-Term Low-GHG Emission Development Strategies (LTSs) of rapidly urbanizing countries. It also highlights opportunities to leverage these instruments as bridges between national decarbonization goals and urban development priorities. While NDCs and LTSs articulate countries’ long-term visions for low-emission, climate-resilient development (LTS) and medium-term climate actions (NDC), they often overlook the importance of decarbonizing urban systems. Aligning climate mitigation for urban areas with national urban development objectives could elevate this agenda and accelerate implementation.
Embedding low-carbon urban development into NDCs and LTSs can send a strong political signal, foster coordination with urban governments and local stakeholders, facilitate access to finance, and enable the effective implementation of multi-sectoral urban policies. Recognizing the impact of urbanization and mitigation measures on national GHG emissions can further unlock their potential and spillover benefits for achieving national—and global—climate targets while progressively raising ambition.
To strengthen the integration of low-carbon urbanization into NDCs and LTSs, this report identifies a range of solutions across policy frameworks, institutional structures, finance mobilization, evidence-based policymaking, and measurement, reporting, and verification (MRV) systems. The integration process must reflect contextual differences between countries and urban areas, considering variations in governance systems, institutional capacity, and financial and technical resources. It is also essential to acknowledge the pressures of rapid urbanization—particularly in low-income and lower-middle-income countries (LICs and LMICs)—including infrastructure deficits and high levels of urban informality. The proposed solutions address key barriers arising from these context-specific challenges, which often limit the inclusion of low-carbon urbanization considerations in NDCs and LTSs and hinder their effective implementation.
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