Research on the status and priority needs of developing countries to address climate change

Identifying what developing countries need to address climate change is of great significance for promoting North-South and South-South climate cooperation and implementing the Paris Agreement. In this study, based on questionnaires surveys of 143 representative government officials, experts, scholars, and industry engineers from developing countries who have been engaged in climate change, the current situation and priority requirements of developing countries in terms of policies and actions, technology, financing, capacity building, and international cooperation for addressing climate change were systematically analyzed. We found that 1. Most developing countries have already taken national general actions and sectoral and industry-level actions focus on renewable or clean energy, waste management and recycling, sustainable urban transport and forestry carbon sequestration. 2. The demands for climate change mitigation are mainly concentrated in technology and capital, and the priority areas are energy and electricity and waste management; for climate change adaptation, the demands differ significantly among regions. 3. Developing countries show high preferences for emission reduction and energy-saving technology, solar energy, wind energy and bio-energy, whereas a low preference for supercritical and ultra supercritical power units, nuclear energy and tidal energy. 4. Agroforestry, energy conservation and efficiency, renewable energy and water resources are priority areas for climate change financing. 5. Building institutional capacity, improving technology R&D networks and institutions, formulation and implementation ability of planning schemes, and data statistics and verification are priority areas needed for capacity building. To better address climate change, developing countries need to establish and improve information exchange channels or platforms and strengthen South-South climate cooperation while optimizing the allocation of climate change resources according to the priority needs. (c) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

Most developing countries have taken actions focusing on renewable energy, waste management, sustainable transport, and forestry carbon sequestration. Demands for climate change mitigation are mainly in technology and capital, with priority areas in energy and waste management. High preferences were shown for emission reduction and energy-saving technology, while low preferences were shown for certain types of power units. Agroforestry, energy conservation, renewable energy, and water resources are priority areas for climate change financing, while institutional capacity building and technology development are also crucial. Developing countries need to enhance information exchange and cooperation channels for addressing climate change effectively.