The United Arab Emirates’ Just Transition Work Programme (JTWP) has gained significant traction, thanks to the multisectoral and multidimensional nature of the issue. It has become one of the most important agenda items at the 62nd meeting of the Subsidiary Bodies (SB62) taking place from June 16 to 26, 2025 in Bonn, Germany .
As echoed by most parties, an agreement on the JTWP could help restore faith in multilateralism, which was eroded during 29th Conference of Parties (COP29) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) last year following a disappointing outcome on the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG). However, the inclusion of unilateral trade measures (UTM) within the JTWP agenda has already exposed sharp divisions, with no shared understanding of their relevance in the programme.
The JTWP was established at COP28 held in the UAE, but its scope and operationalisation are currently under negotiation at SB62. The aim is to recommend a draft decision for adoption at COP30, to be held in Belém, Brazil later this year. So far, three key dialogues have been held, the most recent in Panama in May 2025, where participants discussed ‘approaches to enhancing adaptation and climate resilience’.
In the first week of discussions, the co-facilitators proposed using the COP29 presidency’s draft text as a starting point for the conversation. They also shared seven elements that could help structure the future draft decision texts. These elements included contextualising the UAE JTWP, building synergies within the UNFCCC, operationalising the work programme and enabling support for just transition pathways, to name a few.
Within these broad elements, different countries emphasised different priorities based on their climate and development agenda. The African Group, for example, laid out their development needs such as affordable energy access, clean cooking and improved employment, which they urged should be supported through international cooperation, innovation, and technology transfer. The Least Developed Countries (LDC) further stressed the importance of debt restructuring, urging that it be reflected in the work programme.
The G77 and China, representing 134 developing countries and forming the largest bloc at the negotiations, argued that UTMs must be clearly articulated in the JTWP. They contended that such measures hinder their ability to eradicate poverty and develop sustainably. The group championed the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities (CBDR-RC), asserting that there can be no one-size-fits-all model for just transitions. Notably, Russia is the only developed country to have opposed the inclusion of UTMs.
Additionally, the Like-Minded Developing Countries (LMDC) argued that just transition pathways must be nationally determined. The bloc called for a reference to Article 9.1 of the Paris Agreement, which obliges developed countries to provide financial resources to help developing nations tackle climate change, to be included in the preambular section of the draft decision.
Developed countries such as the EU, UK, Australia and Japan were, meanwhile, broadly aligned in linking just transition pathways to the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. This view was also supported by LDCs, Small Island Developing States (SIDS), and the Independent Association of Latin America and the Caribbean (AILAC). The developed countries further referenced that all submissions to the UNFCCC, including nationally determined contributions (NDC), National Adaptation Plans (NAP) and Long-Term Low Emission Development Strategies (LT-LEDS), should incorporate just transition considerations during both development and implementation stages.
By the end of the first week, negotiations had shifted from broad discussions about the different elements that could form the JTWP to proposing textual amendments to the draft decision. These changes are largely in line with entrenched national or bloc positions, with little compromise. Reaching a consensus for COP30 will require parties to negotiate in good faith.
The degree of divergence around the contentious issue of UTM could dictate the progresson the JTWP. Additionally, perspectives on the financial flows from developed countries to the developing countries would be central to the discussion. Given how things unfolded in Baku, calls for globally just pathways and strengthening ambition may be met with insistence on CBDR-RC and equity, reflecting the stark socio-economic disparities between nations.