France and the UN Environment Programme co-host a two-day conference starting Thursday to find ways to cut the sizeable carbon footprint of the construction sector, a major contributor to climate change.

Nearly 2,000 government officials, diplomats, industry representatives and members of civil society from 50 countries are gathering in Paris for the Buildings and Climate Global Forum.

The buildings and construction sector's global greenhouse gas emissions are continuing to rise, the French ecological transition ministry said.

"The sector is not on the right path to decarbonise by 2050," the ministry said.

"It is therefore crucial to fundamentally rethink the way we build and use our buildings in order to ensure that national climate policies succeed and the Paris Agreement on climate is respected," it said.

The UN says the world must reach net-zero emissions by 2050 in order to meet the Paris accord's ambitious goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

Coming on the heels of the UN's COP28 climate summit in Dubai, the Paris forum in Paris is expected to produce a joint statement that has been negotiated for months.

The buildings and construction sector is responsible for one-fifth of global greenhouse gas emissions.

The forum is being attended by government officials from the United States and China, the world's top economies and emitters of greenhouse gases.

The event also brings together architects, engineers, property developers, among others, along with international organisations.