Morocco is the second best-performing in the Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI), an annual report conducted by Germanwatch, NewClimate Institute and Climate Action Network Europe.
Ranked 5th among the 56 nations evaluated by the report, the Kingdom moved up by one place in the ranking that highlights the countries that have failed to take ambitious action on climate protection, and those with best practice climate policies.
Positioned behind Sweden and ahead of Lithuania, Morocco has been able to top several other countries in the region, including Egypt and Algeria, ranked 24th and 47th respectively.
According CCPI, which designed to enhance transparency in international climate politics, Morocco «has significantly increased the share of renewables over the past five years and has increased new renewable energy capacity».
Morocco is on the right track to achieve its «target of 42% installed renewable energy capacity by 2020 and 52% by 2030», said CCPI, referring to the country’s solar plant and wind farm projects.
A good performance
The index indicates that Morocco’s «low GHG (Greenhouse Gas) emission level and ambitious NDC (Nationally Determined Contribution) cumulate to a high rating in the GHG emissions category».
Although Morocco maintained its «high ranking in the Climate Policy category», its national experts believe that the implementation of national policies was delayed.
«They acknowledge the consultative process of developing a long-term strategy for 2050, which among other initiatives could make the country a policy frontrunner on the international level», stressed the same source.
Indeed, Morocco is part of the category including countries with a high profile, according to the Climate Change Performance Index. The latter is based on 15 indicators, including «GHG Emissions», «Renewable Energy» and «Energy Use», as well as on «Climate Policy».
«No country performed well enough to reach the ranking very good in this year’s index, meaning that no country has yet made it to one of the top three places in the rankings», added the same source.
Iran (58th), the United States (59th) and Saudi Arabia (60th) are at the bottom of the ranking, scoring low or very low across almost all categories.