COP31 Opens in Antalya With Pressure to Turn Climate Pledges Into Action

Governments face pressure to turn climate pledges into action as rising economic losses, energy insecurity and slow progress towards the 1.5°C target dominate the agenda.

Climate change is taking an increasing toll on economies, destroying livelihoods, disrupting businesses and damaging infrastructure. Against this backdrop, the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP31) opens today, Monday, November 9, in Antalya, Türkiye.

The conference, which runs until November 20, brings together governments, businesses, development institutions and civil society groups to consider how countries can accelerate action against a crisis whose economic and human costs continue to grow.

A major concern is the widening gap between climate commitments and what countries are actually delivering. Despite years of international negotiations and national pledges, collective progress remains insufficient to keep global warming within the 1.5°C limit this century.

For COP31, the focus is therefore on implementation, with governments facing pressure to move beyond setting targets and deliver policies and investments that can make a difference.

A COP of implementation

Türkiye is hosting COP31, while Australia is leading the negotiations, with both countries placing implementation and acceleration at the centre of the conference.

In their fourth joint letter, COP31 President Designate and Türkiye’s Minister of Environment, Urbanisation and Climate Change, Murat Kurum, and Australia’s Minister for Climate Change and Energy, Chris Bowen, who will preside over the negotiations, described their vision as a COP of “implementation and acceleration”.

They want concrete progress on practical issues through both the formal negotiations and the Global Climate Action Agenda.

The emphasis reflects concerns that countries are making climate commitments without having the resources, technology and institutional capacity to deliver them at the required pace.

For developing economies, this is a particularly pressing issue. Investment in renewable energy, climate adaptation and resilient infrastructure requires substantial financing, much of which remains difficult to mobilise.

Climate ambition falls short of 1.5°C

The scale of the challenge is outlined in the UN Climate Change Quarterly Update for the third quarter of 2026, written by Simon Stiell, Executive Secretary of UN Climate Change, the secretariat that supports countries in international climate negotiations.

Mr Stiell acknowledged progress in international climate cooperation, noting that countries are increasingly adopting whole-of-economy and whole-of-society approaches to climate policymaking.

However, he warned that collective efforts remain far below what science indicates is necessary to keep the 1.5°C warming limit within reach.

“Climate multilateralism is delivering important progress, and Parties are increasingly taking whole-of-economy, whole-of-society approaches to climate policymaking,” he wrote.

“However, collective progress remains substantially insufficient, based on science, to keep the 1.5°C warming limit within reach for this century.”

The warning sets the context for discussions in Antalya, where countries are expected to consider how to strengthen their commitments and speed up the policies needed to reduce emissions and prepare for climate impacts.

Countries struggle to turn pledges into action

Three reports published on October 27, ahead of COP31, provide further insight into the state of global climate action.

They are the 2026 Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) Synthesis Report, the 2026 Biennial Transparency Reports (BTR) Synthesis Report and the 2026 National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) Progress Report.

The reports examine national climate targets, countries’ reporting of progress and their plans to adapt to climate change.

According to Mr Stiell, some countries and other climate stakeholders are finding ways to accelerate their commitments, but significant obstacles remain.

These include the difficulties of translating national targets into funded programmes and putting the necessary policies and institutional arrangements in place.

The reports are expected to inform discussions on how countries can move from announcing climate ambitions to implementing measures that produce measurable results.

Climate finance remains a major concern

Financing will be another important issue at COP31, particularly for developing countries that need substantial resources to implement climate policies and protect vulnerable communities.

Two reports from the UN Standing Committee on Finance were also published on October 27. They are the Seventh Biennial Assessment and Overview of Climate Finance Flows and the Third Report on Progress towards Achieving the Goal of the US$100 Billion.

The reports examine global climate finance flows and progress towards the annual US$100 billion climate finance goal.

For developing countries, the availability of predictable and accessible funding remains critical. Governments need resources not only to reduce emissions but also to strengthen agriculture, protect infrastructure, improve energy access and prepare communities for increasingly severe climate impacts.

The financing debate is therefore closely linked to the ability of countries to deliver on the commitments they have made under the international climate framework.

Climate change’s growing economic toll

The effects of climate change are increasingly being felt across economic sectors, with consequences extending beyond environmental damage.

Mr Stiell said climate impacts are hitting populations and economies harder each year, disrupting livelihoods and damaging economic growth, jobs, living standards, infrastructure and supply chains.

Energy markets are also adding to the pressure. Fossil fuel price volatility continued through the third quarter and into the fourth quarter of 2026, raising costs for households, businesses and governments, including sovereign borrowing costs.

Countries that have moved faster towards renewable energy have been better protected from some of these price and energy security pressures.

Mr Stiell described the global transition to more affordable and secure clean energy as irreversible, but noted that progress remains uneven and many countries need support to benefit from it.

For African economies, the challenge is to expand access to affordable energy while attracting investment into cleaner energy sources and supporting industrial development.

The transition carries significant economic implications, particularly for countries seeking to reduce their exposure to volatile fossil fuel markets while meeting growing energy demand.

Pacific nations highlight climate vulnerability

The pre-COP meeting held in Fiji in early October, in partnership with Australia, brought renewed attention to the situation of climate-vulnerable Pacific island nations.

Tuvalu hosted a leaders’ event alongside other Pacific island countries, highlighting the scale of the threats facing communities exposed to rising sea levels and other climate impacts.

The meeting also considered practical climate solutions and the need for stronger international cooperation.

Mr Stiell said the discussions demonstrated the importance of solidarity and practical cooperation in accelerating climate action at global, regional, national and local levels.

For vulnerable countries, the challenge is immediate. Climate impacts threaten homes, livelihoods, infrastructure and the economic foundations on which communities depend.

UN secretariat focuses on implementation

With countries calling for greater progress on implementation, the UN Climate Change Secretariat says it will continue supporting governments through technical work, data, reporting and international meetings.

Mr Stiell said these activities help countries bridge the gap between climate ambition and delivery, providing the processes and information needed to sustain international cooperation throughout the year.

He said the secretariat had been working closely with its counterparts in Türkiye and Australia ahead of the conference and was ready to support countries in delivering a strong and balanced set of outcomes.

For Ghana and other developing economies, the discussions in Antalya have practical implications, particularly regarding access to climate finance, investment in renewable energy and support for communities whose livelihoods depend on climate-sensitive sectors such as agriculture.

The outcome of COP31 will be judged not simply by the commitments governments make, but by whether they can agree on the support and practical measures needed to implement them.

With the 1.5°C target increasingly difficult to achieve, countries gathering in Antalya face a familiar but urgent task: making climate commitments count in their economies and in the lives of their people.