India, for the first time, ranks among the top 10 in the Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) 2020 released on December 10, 2019 at the COP25 climate change summit in Madrid.
The index was jointly presented by Germanwatch, NewClimate Institute and Climate Action Network.
India has been ranked 9th in the high category showing that emissions are still comparatively low.
Despite a high rating for its Climate Policy performance, experts point out that India has yet to develop a roadmap to phase-out fossil fuel subsidies and reduce the country’s high dependence on coal.
The authors of the report noted that while the country receives an overall medium rating in the renewable energy category, India’s 2030 renewable energy target is rated very high for its well-below 2 degrees Celsius compatibility.
None of the countries was ranked 1st to 3rd. Sweden was ranked 4th, which is the highest ranking by any country, followed by Denmark (5th).
China, the largest global emitter slightly improves its ranking in the index to 30th place.
While only two G20 countries, the UK (7th) and India (9th), are ranked in the high category, eight G20 countries are remaining in the worst category of the index.
US was ranked 61st, the worst ranking in the list.
About Climate Change Performance Index
The Climate Change Performance Index by Germanwatch and NewClimate Institute published together with the Climate Action Network (CAN) is a ranking of the 57 countries (new: Chile) and the EU, collectively responsible for about 90% of global GHG emissions. The four categories assessed are: GHG Emissions (40%), Renewable Energy (20%), Energy Use (20%) and Climate Policy (20%). The latter is based on expert assessments by NGOs and think tanks from the respective countries. Within the categories GHG Emissions, Renewable Energy and Energy Use the CCPI also evaluates to what extent the respective countries are taking adequate action to be on track towards the global Paris-goal of limiting global warming to well below 2°C. Therefore, the CCPI is an important tool to enhance transparency in international climate politics and enables comparison of climate protection efforts and progress made by individual countries.
