Policy Updates

From June 9-13, 2025, the 3^rd UN Ocean Conference was hosted in Nice, France, ending with over 170 countries adopting a joint declaration committing to urgent measures for ocean conservation and sustainable use.

The event featured 55 heads of state and government as well as upwards of 15,000 participants from civil society, business, and science. The Nice Ocean Action Plan, combining this declaration with voluntary pledges, was said to mark renewed global political will for marine protection.

Key commitments included:

• A European Commission pledge of EUR1 billion (US$1.1 billion) for ocean conservation;
• A pledge by French Polynesia to create the world’s largest marine protected area;
• A pledge by New Zealand of US$52 million for Pacific Ocean governance;
• A pledge by Italy of EUR6.5 million (US$7 million) to strengthen Coast Guard surveillance in marine protected areas and on oil platforms;
• A pledge by Spain to establish five new marine protected areas, aiming to safeguard 25% of its marine territory;
• A pledge by Germany of EUR100 million (US$115 million) for Baltic and North Sea munitions clearance;
• The launch of a Coral Bond for reef conservation by Indonesia, WB, and partners.

37 countries, led by Panama and Canada, launched the High Ambition Coalition for a Quiet Ocean, while Canada pledged US$9 million to the Ocean Risk and Resilience Alliance. UN agencies and global partners also launched a co-design process for One Ocean Finance to unlock billions in new financing from ocean-dependent industries and blue economy sectors.

Nineteen more states ratified the Marine Biodiversity Treaty, bringing total signatures to 136 and ratifications to 50 states, plus the EU. Ten more ratifications are needed for the Agreement to enter into force. The 4^th UN Ocean Conference, in 2028, will be co-hosted by Chile and the Republic of Korea.

On July 24, 2024, the cabinet of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez approved the Master Plan for Sustainable Development and Global Solidarity 2024-2027 to set strategic priorities for Spain’s development cooperation.

In coordination with the Spanish Law for Sustainable Development Cooperation and Global Solidarity, approved in February 2023, the new Master Plan includes the objective of increasing Spain’s ODA/GNI to 0.7% by 2030. The Master Plan sets different ODA growth estimates for the period between 2024 and 2030. In 2027, for the lowest scenario, Spain’s ODA/GNI would reach 0.40%, and for the highest scenario ODA/GNI would reach 0.55%.

Spain outlined focus on three different development areas:

• Social transition, including democratic governance, global health and health systems, food security and nutrition, quality education, gender equality and women empowerment, culture and development;
• Ecological transition, including climate adaptation and mitigation, clean energies, biodiversity, water, and sanitation; and
• Economic transition, including rural development, inclusive economic development, digitalization.

Geographically, priority regions for Spain’s development cooperation include SSA, in particular the Sahel regions and Portuguese- and Spanish-speaking countries, North Africa and Middle East, and Latin America and the Caribbean.

On May 20, 2024, Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation José Manuel Albares presented a new development cooperation program, titled Masar Al’an (‘Masar Now’) at an official event held in Madrid.

The Spanish foreign ministry and AECID seek to strengthen sustainable development in the MENA region. It encompasses an initial budgetary envelope of EUR4 million (US$4 million) in 2024, aimed at strengthening socio-economic opportunities for youth and women, promoting gender equality, protecting biodiversity, and fostering climate change adaptation in sectors such as rural development and fisheries.

AECID will work in collaboration with UN agencies as well as EUI, including the Union for the Mediterranean and the European Institute for the Mediterranean.

On December 9, 2023, during COP28, the Dutch government launched an international coalition to phase out fossil fuel subsidies, comprising 13 countries: Antigua and Barbuda, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Costa Rica, Denmark, Finland, France, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Spain.

Research by the Dutch government found that half of all Dutch fossil fuel subsidies are tied to international agreements. This international coalition was created with the intention of phasing out fossil fuel subsidies while preventing greenhouse gas emissions shifting to other parts of the world.

The coalition noted three main pillars:

• Transparency: all member countries publishing an overview of their fossil fuel subsidies by COP29 in 2024;
• International agreements: identifying and addressing international barriers to phasing out fossil fuel subsidies; and
• National action: encouraging international dialogue to share knowledge, develop national strategies, and join action to minimize carbon leakage.

In the coalition’s joint statement, various international organizations including the IMF, OECD, WTO, and World Bank were asked to develop a comprehensive methodological framework to identify the scope of international fossil fuel subsidies and to develop guidance for national phase-out strategies.

On December 4, 2023, Canada announced a pledge of CAD34 million (US$25 million) for the Special Climate Change Fund, hosted by the GEF.

The announcement was part of a joint statement released by Canada and the governments of Belgium, France, Germany, Norway, Spain, Sweden, and the UK during COP28. Canada’s pledge to the fund will support in accelerating climate change adaptation in SIDS and catalyzing technology transfer, innovation, and private sector engagement for adaptation.

On December 2, 2023, the EU institutions, the EIB, the EBRD, and the Member States that comprise Team Europe pledged EUR20 billion (US$21.8 billion) for clean energy partnerships with African partners.

The funding announcement listeed EUR3.4 billion (US$3.7 billion) in grants and covered the period from 2021-2027. The project, AEGEI, aims to produce over 50 Gigawatts of renewable energy by 2030.

12 EU Member States contributed to the funding. No language regarding specific partner countries was included in the announcement.

On December 1, 2023, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced a 50% increase of Spain’s annual contribution to climate funding, bringing it to EUR1.4 billion (US$1.5 billion) at COP28.

Sánchez also announced EUR20 million (US$22 million) to a new fund for climate disasters and EUR2 million (US$2 million) to the Amazonia Siempre initiative for tackling deforestation.

At COP28’s plenary session, Sánchez spoke about the importance of increasing funding to fight climate change, underlined the importance of mitigation, and emphasized the strategic role of advancing adaptation in partner countries. He called for a profound improvement of the climate financial architecture and a transformation of the global development model.

Sánchez also announced that the first high-level meeting on droughts, aimed at publicizing the work of the International Drought Resilience Alliance, will take place in Barcelona in September 2024. Sánchez underlined Spain’s strong commitment to combating climate change, stressing its contribution of EUR225 million (US$246 million) to the GCF.

On September 21st, 2023, acting Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez addressed the 78^th UN General Assembly and expressed Spain’s commitment towards multilateralism and the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development.

Sánchez focused his speech on accelerating the global response to climate change, particularly on climate adaptation and mitigation. Clmiate commitments made in the speech included:

• EUR225 million (US$241 million) to the Green Climate Fund;
• EUR20 million (US$21 million) to the Adaptation Fund; and
• EUR17 million (US$18 million) to other multilateral instruments working on climate change.

These pledges will be reiterated at the UN Climate Change Conference at COP28, which is slated to take place in the UAE in November 2023.

Sánchez also underlined the need to strengthen multilateral institutions to advance the implementation SDGs and foster gender equality, food security, democracy, and human rights worldwide. He reiterated his commitment to increase development finance and emphasized that Spain was the first donor to announce that 20% of its SDRs would be allocated to low- and middle- income partner countries.

On July 28, 2023, the EU announced EUR466 million (US$516 million) in funding for the Philippines under the Global Gateway initiative.

The funding was announced by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen during a meeting in Manila with President Ferdinand Marcos. Von der Leyen stated that the funding would support the development of circular economic policy to manage plastic waste in oceans. In addition to policy development, the funding also targeted technology and knowledge transfers to support implementation.

Of the total Team Europe contribution, EUR64 million (US$71 million) was allocated from the EU budget. The remaining EUR402 million (US$445 million) comprised contributions from individual member states, including France, Germany, Spain, and Finland.

On July 13, 2023, the Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union, and Cooperation José Manuel Albares and the director of AECID Antón Leis participated at the EU - CLACS Society Forum organized in Brussels, Belgium.

The meeting took place in the framework of the 3^rd EU- CLACS Summit, held from July 17-18, 2023. The summit prioritized innovative solutions for sustainable and inclusive development in the LAC region.

Albares highlighted that Spain, the EU, and the LAC region share a common approach in the areas of sustainable development, democratic values, human rights, peace, and the environment.

The EU - CLACS Civil Society Forum gathered government officials, development NGOs, youth collectives and other civil society groups. The civil society forum provided the EU - CLACS Summit with ten specific recommendations on gender equality, global health, the caring economy, democratic participation, digitalization, climate change, and education.