Costa Rica

NDC Status

Costa Rica submitted its third NDC in November 2025.

Key highlights from the NDC

Costa Rica's updated NDC strengthens the country’s commitments across mitigation, adaptation, inclusion, and financing. The NDC establishes an economy-wide net emissions budget for 2025 – 2035, covering all sectors and gases, equivalent to an approximate 53 percent reduction in GHG emissions, conditional on international support.
Costa Rica strengthens its mitigation ambition through a detailed multisectoral portfolio that includes transformative actions in energy, electrified transport, waste management, agriculture and livestock, the FOLU sector, and emerging areas such as blue carbon.
The NDC also integrates circular economy approaches, particularly in waste valorization and industrial processes.
The country enhances its adaptation actions through alignment with the National Adaptation Plan (2022–2026), expanding coverage of water security, resilient cities, coastal zones, biodiversity, and agrolandscapes. A dedicated analysis of loss and damage addresses historical hydrometeorological losses, non-economic impacts, future projections, and risk-transfer mechanisms.
The NDC aligns closely with the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP), integrating biodiversity, forest conservation, ocean ecosystems, and nature-based solutions as core elements of climate action. This strengthens synergies with REDD+, blue carbon approaches, and conservation-based mitigation and adaptation.
Costa Rica deepens its social and territorial inclusion by embedding gender equality, youth participation, and a comprehensive Just Transition framework. The NDC also formalizes the integration of Indigenous Peoples, drawing on validated territorial planning processes and REDD+ consultation mechanisms to ensure free, prior, and informed participation and to recognize Indigenous stewardship of forests and ecosystems.
Finance considerations are explicitly addressed through a national sustainable finance taxonomy, detailed cost assessments and an strategy combining domestic resources, private investment, international cooperation, and high-integrity carbon markets under Article 6.
UNDP, together with GIZ, the NDC Partnership, in collaboration with UN entities (including FAO, UNEP, UNIDO, UNICEF) and other partners supported technical assessments, modelling, and inclusive stakeholder engagement, contributing to a more robust NDC.