The NDC Transport Initiative for Asia (NDC TIA) is a joint programme of seven organisations and is funded by the International Climate Initiative (IKI) of the German Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU). Implementing organisations are Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, World Resources Institute (WRI), International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT), International Transport Forum (ITF), Agora Verkehrswende (AGORA), Partnership on Sustainable, Low Carbon Transport (SLoCaT) Foundation and Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century e.V. (REN21).

The regional initiative aims at a holistic approach to decarbonize the transport sector in China, India, Vietnam, and further Asian countries. This includes, for instance, the development of a coherent strategy for efficient policy approaches which is coordinated between various sector ministries, civil society and the private sector.

In each of the partner countries, the consortium supports the design and information of stakeholder processes and the development of selected climate protection measures. In this way, the partners are supported in making their sectoral contributions to the achievement of the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) of the Paris Agreement and in raising their ambitions for long-term strategies and the 2025 NDCs.

As a regional initiative, the programme disseminates appropriate knowledge in Asia via existing platforms. By linking with regional stakeholders and other Asian countries, it contributes to promoting a comprehensive approach to decarbonising transport. At the global level, the programme will contribute its experience to the UNFCCC process.

India has a massive and diverse transport sector that caters to the needs of billion people. It has the world’s second-largest road network, which contributes to maximum greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions through all the means of transportation. With increasing urbanisation, the fleet size i.e. the number of sales of vehicles is increasing rapidly. It is projected that the total number of vehicles will be doubled by 2030.

The transport sector is the third highest GHG emitting sector in India and the emissions from road transport are expected to grow faster than any other sector in the country. On the other side, the transport sector is a great enabler for economic development and carries the significant potential to limit GHG emissions and the issue of air pollution, especially in cities. 

The NDC-TIA India Component will focus on establishing a multi-stakeholder dialogue platform for decarbonising transport in India, strengthening GHG and transport modelling capacities, providing technical support on GHG emission reduction measures, financing climate actions in transport, offering policy recommendations on electric vehicle (EV) demand and supply policies, evaluating business models through cost-benefit analyses and so forth. 

A significant focus will be given on electric mobility, which would require coupling of transport and energy sectors and receiving cross-sectoral expertise from ministries, international development agencies, think tanks, public and private organisations. Ultimately, the programme intends to support the development of policies and regulations to promote electric vehicle charging infrastructure uptake and smooth widescale adoption of EVs in India.