PORTUGAL Law and Practice Contributed by: Assunção Cristas, Catarina Pinto Correia and Carolina Vaza, VdA
VdA Rua Dom Luís I, 28 1200-151 Lisboa Portugal
Tel: +351 21 311 3400 Fax: +351 21 311 3406 Email: acr@vda.pt Web: www.vda.pt
1. Multilateral and Regional Regimes 1.1 Multilateral Climate Change Legal Regime As a member of the EU, Portugal has integrated the EU position within the Climate Convention and is very active in the co-ordination procedures. The EU Nation - ally Determined Contribution (NDC) is an agreement of joint fulfilment submitted by the European Com - mission on behalf of the EU and its member states to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The positions are guided by the Council’s conclusions. The Council’s Working Party on International Environmental Issues – Climate Change (WPIEI-CC) is responsible for co-ordinating the EU’s position and has a negotiating team composed of members from different member states. The Portu - guese position is aligned with the most ambitious targets and the Portuguese authorities, both political and technical, usually play a role in supporting the push for more ambitious targets in mitigation issues, in line with national decisions (eg, the national Cli - mate Framework Law opens the door to anticipating climate neutrality by 2045). Adaptation is critical for Portugal, as the Iberian Penin - sula is one of the regions of the world most vulnerable to climate change worldwide. Accordingly, Portugal is particularly vocal regarding adaptation issues. As part of the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Coun - tries, Portugal works closely with nine other countries across five continents, including Angola and Mozam - bique, and is particularly sensitive to issues relating to technology transfer, which is usually addressed through its development assistance strategies and
projects. Regarding climate finance, Portugal uses its public Environmental Fund to finance several climate- related projects at the international level, as part of its development aid strategy, particularly in Portu - guese-speaking countries. The Fund also supports the implementation of Portugal’s ambitious domestic climate policies. For instance, in 2023, Portugal and Cabo Verde signed an agreement to convert Cabo Verde’s external debt into a Climate and Environment Fund. Thus, the amount of debt repayment to Portu - gal will be fully invested in this fund for the climate and energy transition, an amount that should reach EUR42,5 million by 2030. It is expected that, given a positive assessment of the agreement, the remaining debt can then also be converted into investments to increase the country’s resilience and help to achieve the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. 1.2 Regional Climate Change Legal Regimes As a member of the EU, Portuguese authorities, both at a political and technical level, are engaged with all the relevant legislative processes including those of the European Council, European Parliament and the European Commission. Portugal generally sup - ports more ambitious mitigation targets, in line with its national climate policy. As referred to in 1.1 Mul- tilateral Climate Change Legal Regime , adaptation is an area of great concern and commitment for the Portuguese authorities. It should be noted that the European Climate Law was adopted in 2021 under the Portuguese Presidency of the Council of the EU and was one of the notable achievements of that Presi - dency.
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