Philippines

The Philippines is a high-performing country in this year’s CCPI, up six places and ranking 6th.

The country earns a high in the GHG Emissions and Energy Use categories medium in Renewable Energy, and low in Climate Policy. The Philippines performs very well compared with other surveyed CCPI countries in per capita emissions, with 2.27 tCO2eq.

No strong fiscal measures

The CCPI country experts criticise the country’s Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) for lacking a long-term emissions reduction strategy. The connection between the NDC and climate policy implementation remains unclear. Neither the NDC nor the policies mention any strong fiscal measures, such as the phase-out of fossil fuel subsidies. Despite the country’s low per capita emissions compared with other CCPI countries surveyed, the CCPI experts remain apprehensive about the environmental impact of future development plans, particularly in the transport sector, which is still not environmentally friendly and continues to harm ecosystems and biodiversity. The NDC still lacks clarity on topics such as agriculture, land use, and forestry.

The Philippines formulated the new Philippine Energy Plan (PEP) for the period 2023–2050. The plan targets 40% renewable energy in the energy mix by 2040 but includes nuclear in the mix. The Philippines also recently started implementing the 2008 Renewable Energy Act, which should enable faster adoption and development of renewable energy. The act mainly gives mechanisms for encouraging new investments in the sector by providing fiscal and non-fiscal measures, such as tax holidays and introducing Renewable Portfolio Standards.

The country joined multiple renewable energy initiatives

The Philippines was involved in more UNFCCC discussions and joined multiple climate and renewable energy initiatives in recent years. The experts also note that discussions to integrate a just energy transition and net-zero development in national policy are rising, though no concrete changes have yet been made to the policies themselves. The experts also encourage the Philippines to openly support global calls for a fossil fuel phase-out to give the country greater climate ambition.

Key Outcomes

CCPI experts

The following national experts agreed to be mentioned as contributors for this year’s CCPI:

• John Leo Algo (Aksyon Klima Pilipinas)
• Rei Panaligan (Center for Renewable Energy and Sustainable Technology)
• Rodne Galicha (Living Laudato Si’ Philippines)
• Alaya de Leon, Niner Guiao & Nicole Torres (Parabukas)
• Jameela Joy Reyes (Manila Observatory)