COP30 Leaders Put Social Protection at Core of Climate Action in Belém Declaration

Speaking at a Solutions Workshop on 11 November, Vinicius Pinheiro, ILO Country Director in Brazil, reaffirmed the ILO’s strong support for the declaration.

Social protection has taken centre stage in the global climate agenda, following the adoption of the Belém Declaration at the COP30 leaders’ summit on 7 November in Belém, Brazil. Signed by 43 countries and the European Union, the declaration marks a pivotal shift in global climate governance by linking social protection directly to climate resilience, adaptation, and just transition strategies.

The declaration outlines concrete, implementable commitments and calls on international organizations—including the International Labour Organization (ILO)—to monitor progress and provide technical support. With climate impacts intensifying worldwide, the Belém Declaration positions social protection as both a moral imperative and a strategic enabler of climate ambition.

Ambitious Commitments to Strengthen Social Protection

The signatories agreed to a set of global commitments aimed at expanding and climate-proofing social protection systems. These include:

• Supporting climate-vulnerable countries to expand social protection by two percentage points per year.

• Adapting social protection systems to manage climate shocks and long-term climate impacts.

• Mobilizing additional climate finance to strengthen and modernize social protection systems.

• Integrating social protection and just transition across climate planning frameworks, including Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), national climate strategies, and National Adaptation Plans (NAPs).

The declaration underscores that social protection—including income support, health coverage, public employment programmes, and climate-related shock-responsive schemes—is essential for protecting communities from climate risks and enabling vulnerable populations to participate in low-carbon development.

ILO Affirms Full Commitment to the Belém Agenda

Speaking at a Solutions Workshop on 11 November, Vinicius Pinheiro, ILO Country Director in Brazil, reaffirmed the ILO’s strong support for the declaration.

“The ILO is fully committed to advancing the declaration’s goals and monitoring its commitments,” he said. “We are pleased to see the global target of expanding social protection in developing countries by at least two percentage points per year reflected in the Belém Declaration.”

The ILO regularly publishes global social protection data and tracks the integration of social protection measures in climate strategies. This evidence base, Pinheiro noted, will help countries benchmark progress and design stronger climate-responsive systems.

Social Protection at the Heart of Climate Resilience

On 12 November, the ILO—together with FAO, UNICEF, and UNRISD—held an official COP30 side event exploring the role of social protection in climate resilience and just transition. Moderated by Kumi Naidoo, President of the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty Initiative and former Secretary-General of Amnesty International and Greenpeace International, the event showcased experiences from workers, employers, women, and youth representatives.

Mansi Shah from India’s Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA) highlighted the urgency of protecting informal workers: “For poor workers in the informal economy, climate change is a daily, living crisis… Social protection against climate shocks must be an everyday right—not a privilege.”

Government representatives from Cambodia, The Gambia and Brazil shared insights into how their countries are expanding and adapting social protection systems to address climate vulnerability, manage extreme-weather impacts, and support people through the transition to green economies.

Driving Just Transition Through Global Partnerships

The momentum around social protection was further reinforced on 15 November at a high-level event at the French Pavilion. The ILO, the Agence française de Développement (AFD), and representatives from South Africa, Mexico, and Caritas Brazil stressed that climate ambition must go hand in hand with social justice, income security, and decent work.

AFD’s Climate and Nature Director, Audrey Rojkoff, emphasized that social justice is now foundational to AFD’s development model: “Social justice is no longer an option; it is a prerequisite for the success of the projects we support.”

The ILO echoed the message, stressing that good jobs, universal social protection, and equity are not secondary benefits but core enablers of climate mitigation and adaptation.

“A just transition for all must begin—not end—with social protection,” said Moustapha Kamal Gueye, Director of the ILO’s Action Programme on Just Transition.

Breakthroughs in COP30 Negotiations

The growing recognition of social protection’s importance was reflected in several adopted decisions across COP30 negotiation tracks. Notably:

• The new Belém Adaptation Indicators, developed to monitor progress toward the Global Goal on Adaptation under the Paris Agreement, now include two indicators specifically on social protection.

• Parties agreed to develop a Just Transition Mechanism that translates discussions—including those on social protection—into practical, country-level action.

These achievements signal a major step forward in institutionalizing social protection within global climate agreements.

Looking Ahead: Turning Commitments Into Action

The ILO’s social protection and just transition specialists supported COP30 negotiators both as observers and as technical experts, ensuring that labour rights, decent work, and social equity remained central to the discussions.

With the Belém Declaration adopted, attention now shifts to implementation. Countries will need to:

• Expand coverage and financing,

• Build shock-responsive systems,

• Strengthen labour market transitions,

• Protect informal workers, and

• Integrate social protection across climate policies.

The ILO, together with partner UN agencies, development banks, civil society organizations, and social partners, will play a key role in supporting these efforts.

The Belém Declaration signals a global turning point: climate action must be people-centred, and resilient societies can only be built when social protection is universal, inclusive, and robust.