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Laws and Policies

CCLW

CCLW national policies

Act containing the general budget of expenditures for the 2026 fiscal year

Adopted

Enters into force

<p>The 2026 Belgian General Expenditure Budget Law reinforces the federal government’s climate agenda primarily through dedicated financing mechanisms. The law allocates budgetary support to the Climate, Transition and Recovery Fund, authorizing subsidies for projects financed through this federal investment instrument and allowing it to operate with substantial borrowing capacity to accelerate climate and transition investments. More broadly, the law embeds climate action within public expenditure planning by supporting investments linked to the energy transition, decarbonisation, sustainable economic transformation, and federal recovery priorities, aligning fiscal policy with Belgium’s longer-term climate and transition objective.</p>

Act establishing the general expenditure budget for the 2026 financial year

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An aim to achieve a quantifiable outcome within a given time-frame, set by an institution such as a national government.

Policy instruments are techniques or tools used by governing authorities to promote certain policies in order to achieve predetermined goals. Put simply, instruments are how a government tries to achieve its goals, with this taxonomy being focused on national policy instruments.

Risk is the potential for adverse consequences resulting from the dynamic interplay between (climate-related) hazards, exposure, and vulnerability of affected human or ecological systems.

Groups  of people who are adversely affected by climate change or the response to it

A set of principles, processes, and practices that build economic and political power to shift from an extractive economy to a regenerative economy.

Renewable energy means all forms of energy produced from renewable sources in a sustainable manner.

Fossil fuel is a generic term for non-renewable energy sources such as coal, fossil gas, and oil (including crude oil, and petroleum products), that can be used for electricity and heat generation. Fossil fuels are hydrocarbons formed from pressurised and heated organic material buried over millions of years.

Molecules in the atmosphere that play a key role in the greenhouse effect by trapping heat radiating from Earth’s surface.

Area of the economy in which actors engage in identical or related activities.

In human systems, the process of adjustment to actual or expected climate change and its effects, in order to moderate harm, increase resilience or exploit beneficial opportunities. In natural systems, the process of adjustment to actual climate change and its effects; human intervention may facilitate adjustment to expected climate change and its effects.

The management and allocation of funds, assets and investments to meet various objectives

People who are less able to respond to the effects of climate change due to having limited financial or physical assets

A loan is a policy instrument where funds are provided to a borrower with the expectation of repaying the principal plus interest.

A subsidy is a direct or indirect payment to individuals or businesses, typically provided as a government cash payment or a specific tax reduction.

Direct investments by the governments using public funds. This can be to support climate initiatives or integrate climate into other projects.

Compulsory, required payments to the government that are levied more-or-less in proportion to the services provided. Fees and charges range from entrance fees to national parks, charges on land-based sewage discharge.

Financial support to help individuals manage the effects of unexpected events, securing their livelihoods and increasing the resilience of people and businesses to the changing climate. It’s especially vital in developing regions where everyday risks, climate-related weather extremes, or crop failures can push people into poverty. Without insurance, people may have to resort to selling assets or cutting consumption to cope with losses.

Zoning and spatial planning are both methods for guiding the distribution of people and activities in a space, and are regulatory restriction.

Financial actors and resources that are primarily directed towards climate change mitigation, adaptation and compensation.

Dedicated pool of financial resources for climate-related projects.

A financial institution that manages a country's currency and can promote climate-related initiatives through green monetary policy and other means.

A company that is owned wholly or partially by the state, typically operating in key sectors.

A financial entity operated or controlled by the state, often with a mandate for social or economic development.

Using laws and the legal system more broadly to protect vulnerable entities

Aligning the skills of the workforce with the requirements of the just transition.

Either money or something of monetary value is transferred between two or more organisations, people or countries.

Actions or measures to adapt freshwater systems to climate change.

Actions to adapt human health, healthcare systems and well-being to climate change.

Coastal zone and marine-related actions and measures to adapt and increase resilience to climate change

Actions and measures to adapt and increase resilience of societies and the economy to climate change.

Actions or measures to adapt freshwater, coastal and marine systems to climate change.

Justice is the ethical and political framework that addresses fairness, including issues of responsibility, rights, and structural inequity.

Extreme weather refers to events where a weather variable exceeds (or falls below) a threshold. Meaning it is significantly different from the average or usual weather pattern.

Terrestrial means "of the earth" and relates to the risks to ecological system that includes all living organisms and their interactions within land-based environments, such as forests, grasslands, and deserts.

Social protection systems consist of policies that help people manage social risks in order to prevent poverty and maintain decent incomes and living standards

Social inclusion is the process of improving the terms on which individuals and groups take part in society—improving the ability, opportunity, and dignity of those disadvantaged on the basis of their identity.

Oil is a combustible liquid fossil fuel composed mainly of hydrocarbons, occurring as crude oil and refined into petroleum products such as petrol, diesel and kerosene.

Fossil gas, commonly known as natural gas, is a fossil fuel consisting chiefly of methane with smaller amounts of other hydrocarbons and trace gases, found in underground deposits.

Coal is a combustible sedimentary rock formed from carbonised plant matter, rich in carbon and hydrocarbons, and occurring in several main types including hard coal and brown coal.

Work that is productive and delivers a fair income, security in the workplace and social protection for all, better prospects for personal development and social integration, freedom for people to express their concerns, organize and participate in the decisions that affect their lives and equality of opportunity.

People whose health, both mental and physical, makes them more vulnerable to the effects of climate change

People who have left their homes, whether through force, voluntarily, or a mixture of both

woman and genders outside of the gender binary

Any compulsory, unrequited payment to the government levied on corporations or individuals. This can be for environmental reasons, such as introducing a Carbon tax to set a price that emitters must pay for the greenhouse gases they emit.

The activities of industries that transforms raw materials into finished goods through industrial processes.

The activities of industries involved in the production, distribution, and sale of energy, including electricity, gas, and renewables.

This sector involves managing waste treatment, sanitation, pollution control and environmental cleanup.

Activities that involve planning, designing and building infrastructure, residential, and commercial structures.

This sector involves the wholesale and retail selling of goods.

This sector involves activities to move goods and people, alongside the storage of products.

This sector creates and distributes information and entertainment through television, radio, print, and digital platforms.

This sector provides communication services, software development, and IT solutions.

This sector involves activities that impart knowledge and skills to individuals, including formal schooling, vocational training and educational support.

Activities of government agencies and institutions that provide public services, enforce laws and manage public resources.

This sector includes firms and individuals offering specialised expertise in fields such as law, accounting, consulting, science and engineering.

Activities of businesses and institutions that provide financial services and products to individuals and organisations.

Activities that involve the cultivation of crops and raising of livestock for food, fibre, and other products essential for human life and industry.

Activities that relate to the production of goods and services from forests.

This sector involves the distribution, treatment, and conservation of water resources.

This sector provides medical services, manufactures medical equipment, and develops pharmaceuticals to maintain and improve health.

the fair distribution of risks and opportunities of climate change and the transition to a regenerative economy, cognisant in particular of disproportionate impacts on vulnerable communities and the working class

Procedural justice means ensuring that decision making is fair and inclusive, emphasizing the agency and influence of vulnerable groups and those most impacted.

Climate change can have a range of impacts on technological system. Extreme weather events can cause infrastructure failures like power outages or damage to roads and bridges, as well as the impacts from waste following natural disasters. Human activities also cause technological impacts, such as the risks posed by oil spillage and leaks.

Any substance with chemical properties that can cause physical harm to people or damage the environment, including ammonia, carbon monoxide, phosphine, chlorine, arsenic, cadmium, mercury, pesticides, dioxins, microplastics, benzene, asbestos, aflatoxins, fluoride, methanol, and toxins from marine sources.

Climate change impacts our society by disrupting the natural, economic and social systems we depend on. Physical hazards and underlying vulnerabilities can lead to increased resource competition for food and water, which can heighten the risk of conflict.

Slow onset events evolve gradually from incremental changes over many years or from increased frequency or intensity of recurring events. As defined in the Cancun Adaptation Framework (2010), slow onset events include risks and impacts from rising temperatures, desertification, biodiversity loss, land and forest degradation, glacial retreat, ocean acidification, sea level rise, and salinization.

Act containing the general budget of expenditures for the 2026 fiscal year

Policy instrument

Risk

Impacted group

Just transition

Renewable energy

Fossil fuel

Economic sector

Adaptation/resilience

Finance