Climate plans for the people: Assessing and Promoting Civil Society Participation in the Preparation of Nationally Determined Contributions in the MENA region

As countries in the Middle East and North Africa prepare to submit updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) by September 2025 ahead of COP30, Oxfam’s latest policy paper highlights the urgent need for inclusive, transparent, and rights-based climate planning. NDCs are national climate plans under the Paris Agreement and are key to limiting global warming to 1.5°C.

This paper assesses the state of NDC 3.0 preparation in the region, with a focus on Jordan and Lebanon. It finds that while some steps have been taken to involve civil society, participation remains limited and inconsistent. The report underscores a strong desire among stakeholders to make NDCs more inclusive and argues that future climate commitments must embed meaningful public participation, not treat it as optional.

Authors: This paper was written by Shared Planet, a strategy, insight, and engagement consultancy focused on social issues, the environment and natural and cultural heritage. Oxfam acknowledges the assistance of Raya Taher, Marwan Issa, Thomas Reeve, Salma Jrad and Safa’ Al Jayoussi, in its production.

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Summary

This report specifically examines progress in the preparation of NDC 3.0 across the MENA region, including two deep dive case studies in Jordan and Lebanon. Wider conversations however have been held in several other countries in the region. The research focuses on the level of civil society engagement in the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) 3.0 cycle as of March 2025, and the perspectives of a sample of non-state actors, including civil society organisations (CSO), on the NDC process in each country. It aims to understand their familiarity with the NDC process, their views on the role of CSOs in NDC development, and their level of engagement and interest in the process.

While the research showcases that there are limitations in the inclusivity of NDC processes across the four case study countries, it equally points to the opportunities in each country to engage with broad representatives of civil society in NDC 3.0.

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