China

China’s environmental and climate policy has steadily increased during the past few years in terms of action and ambition. Since President Xi Jinping's announcements at the UN General Assembly in December 2020, the country has been pursuing the goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2060. However, greenhouse gas emissions are not expected to fall until around 2030. In the energy sector, there is a significant expansion of renewable energies (especially photovoltaics) as well as the construction of new coal-fired power plants. 

In the preliminary stage of the COP26 in November 2021, China officially submitted its goal of "carbon neutrality by 2060" and its updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) objectives to the UNFCCC. In addition to the 2060 target, this comprises the aim of reaching the CO₂ emission peak before 2030. By means of the NDC update, the country also strengthened its previous non-fossil energy and carbon intensity goals, while at the same time adding a new target for renewable energy capacity.

With regard to land use, the NDC update contains a new volume target for boosting afforestation.

Since 2015, China has adopted a series of policies, which provide top-level design and overall arrangements for ecological civilization development and biodiversity conservation. This includes action plans for water, soil, and air pollution prevention and control as well as national planning for marine function zones, environmental protection, and water and soil conservation. Since 2018, it has been a national priority and part of the constitution to establish an “ecological civilisation”.

In June 2022, China published a new strategy for adapting to the impacts of climate change (National Climate Change Adaptation Strategy 2035). In November 2023, an action plan to control methane emissions was published, focussing on the energy, agriculture and waste sectors.

In the field of biodiversity, China chaired the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). This meeting was held virtually in October 2021 and continued in Canada (Montreal) in December 2022, where a new global biodiversity framework was adopted (Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework).

China's ‘National Biodiversity Conservation Strategy and Action Plan’ (NBSAP) 2011-2030 was published in 2010. An update for 2023-2030 was submitted in January 2024.

The task structure of the IKI projects has proactively accompanied the fulfilment of this development of political priorities and framework conditions. The fact that there is no classic country call with China is a special feature.

The development and selection of bilateral funding priorities and projects, as well as their protection, take place via the Sino-German Working Group on Environment and Climate Change of the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) of the Federal Ministry for the Environment (BMUV), the Foreign Office (AA), the Chinese Ministry for Ecology and the Environment (MEE) and other relevant sector ministries, which usually hold an annual meeting. The priority area of bilateral cooperation with China is the mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions with a focus on climate policy dialogue and advice.

Regional projects are currently placing exclusive focus on the mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions.

In addition, regional and global projects are being implemented with the participation of China, which, in addition to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, also cover the funding areas of biodiversity conservation and, to a lesser extent, the conservation of natural carbon sinks/forests. 

The German-Chinese cooperation with the IKI

As part of the German-Chinese cooperation, several bilateral IKI projects are supporting China in achieving its climate policy targets. The involvement of the municipal and provincal levels in environmental and climate policies should be pointed out here.

In addition, environmental legislation and its implementation in areas such as biodiversity, soil protection and the circular economy are supported as part of a bilateral dialogue on environmental policy.