Beyond the Blueprint: The NDC 3.0 should be More Ambitious for a Greener Bangladesh

The Government of Bangladesh submitted its third Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC 3.0) to the UNFCCC Process on 29 September 2025. While it shows notable institutional advancements in policy coherence and social equity, its quantitative impact is limited by conservative mitigation targets, over-reliance on foreign funding, and the adoption of high-risk, unproven technologies.

Key Recommendations

To align the NDC 3.0 with the 1.5°C pathway and mitigate systemic risks, we urge several policy adjustments:

1. Increase Renewable Energy Ambition: Increase the conditional renewable energy (RE) targets to achieve 25% of the generation capacity. Additionally, mandate a clear deployment roadmap that specifically excludes high-carbon energy carriers, such as imported ammonia.

2. Avoid Climate Debt: Advocate for developed nations to provide climate action support primarily through grants, reparations, or compensation, consistent with climate justice principles, rather than utilising debt instruments for conditional climate initiatives.

3. Establish Domestic Market: Introduce an incremental sectoral Carbon Tax to generate revenue (up to 1% of GDP) and incentivise low-carbon practices domestically.

4. Promote Electrification: Reducing the use of combustion engines is key to reducing carbon emissions. To this end, reduce import duties and taxes on electric vehicles to 25% of those on internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles.

5. Enforce Standards and Efficiency: Immediately mandate and enforce sectoral Minimum Energy Performance Standards (MEPS) and stringent emission limits across industry, power, and transport to curb demand and mitigate public health crises.

6. Reduce International Overreliance: Prioritise essential and cost-effective domestic mitigation efforts, such as reducing fugitive methane emissions, by implementing mandatory domestic regulations rather than relying on unstable international carbon markets.

7. Strengthen Non-energy Regulation: Introduce binding targets for reducing embodied carbon in construction materials and mandate aggressive electrification goals for national rail and inland water freight transport.