Water scarcity and drought are among the serious consequences of climate change.

Climate change and development policy

Climate policy and development policy are inextricably linked. Climate change has severe consequences for people, communities and ecosystems. Climate change is hitting countries that have in the past contributed little to its causes particularly hard, including many countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and Oceania, which are often referred to as countries of the Global South.

Germany is very interested in working with these countries on the joint development of climate-resilient solutions for agriculture or urban development, for example, or solutions for sustainable energy systems and the conservation of nature and natural resources. After all, climate change knows no borders. Heat waves, droughts and extreme weather events affect, above all, vulnerable population groups in our partner countries – but also people in Europe. That is why cooperation and mutual learning in areas such as technology, innovation or adaptation to climate risks are in the interest of all of us. Globally just climate policies help to create a liveable and fair world for current and future generations.

The German Development Ministry (BMZ) is working closely with its partner countries in this field. Together, we are strengthening the capacities of local people, communities and institutions to meet the challenges of climate change. This cooperation opens up new economic opportunities for all those involved, including Germany – for example through the involvement of German companies in sustainable investment, technology transfers or the development of new markets.

Many countries in the Global South are already faced with the twin challenge of striving to improve social and economic living conditions for large swathes of their populations while simultaneously responding to the increasingly noticeable impacts of climate change. At the same time, they also need to reduce emissions and achieve a just transition to a climate- and resource-friendly economy. The BMZ assists people and institutions in its partner countries in tackling this necessary transition actively and on their own terms. In this way, Germany is contributing towards the implementation of the Paris Agreement and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, both in its partner countries and nationally.

The transition to a climate-friendly future must be socially, economically and environmentally just. In the long term, climate policy will only succeed if all groups within society are able to have a say in it and benefit from it. This principle of a just social-ecological transformation is embodied in the term “just transition”. It means that no one should be left behind on the path towards a climate-neutral, resilient and socially just economic and social system. New technologies and resource-friendly business models offer opportunities for sustainable prosperity – provided that the profits are shared fairly.


Challenges

  • Just Transition: Making sure that the transition towards climate-neutral economies and lifestyles is just Internal link

    In order to keep the impacts of climate change within manageable limits, we need to ensure that lifestyles and economies worldwide become climate neutral by mid-century. This transition will only be successful if it includes emerging economies and developing countries – and it must be designed in a way that is socially just (Just Transition).

    A woman in Burundi reads by the light of a solar-powered table lamp.
  • Stopping global warming: Reducing greenhouse gas emissions Internal link

    The emission of carbon dioxide needs to be reduced rapidly and drastically so as to halt the increase in global average temperatures (“decarbonisation”). This will require protecting natural carbon sinks such as oceans, forests and wetlands. Agriculture, for instance, will have to be restructured in order to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases like methane and nitrous oxide.

    Solar plant and coal-fired power station in Ulan Bator, Mongolia
  • Enhancing resilience: Adapting to the impacts of climate change Internal link

    Climate change threatens countless people's livelihoods – and this threat will increase further in future. For that reason, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) is not only funding climate change mitigation measures; it is also supporting its partner countries in adapting to the unavoidable impacts of climate change and, where adaptation is not sufficient, in dealing with climate change-related loss and damage.

    Construction of a embankment on the banks of the Mayur River in the town of Khulna in south-western Bangladesh
  • Loss and damage protection: improved support for vulnerable countries Internal link

    Loss and damage caused by climate change is becoming increasingly more frequent in many developing countries and emerging economies. That is why Germany initiated the Global Shield against Climate Risks during its G7 Presidency. At the global climate change conferences, too, Germany has been working to improve the support provided to vulnerable people and countries as they deal with loss and damage.

    A road in the Caribbean nation of St Lucia was washed away after heavy rain.

What we do

As at: 21/08/2025