COP29: Countries, activists upset as climate finance negotiations end first week at an impasse

The first week of the much-hyped two-week UN Climate Conference (COP29) has ended with close discussions on climate finance making some headway but a comprehensive agreement remained elusive, which developing countries and climate activists have called disturbing and disappointing.

Developing countries are calling for an annual climate finance commitment of $1.3 trillion, which they believe is essential for meeting their climate action targets and coping with the escalating impacts of climate change.

They are also seeking a new financing goal for mitigation, adaptation, and loss and damage. However, as per the draft text, no number has yet been proposed by the developed countries for this goal. The negotiators are debating streamlining the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) draft text, saying there are many challenges, including the definition of climate finance.

Negotiators from different countries, especially from developed countries, said the developed countries want to fix the definition by 2028 and that is delaying the process. Moreover, it is mentioned in the text that doubling the adaptation finance is not enough.

The developed countries together are demanding a National Adaption Plan of $215-383 billion, and there is some ambiguity that needs to be solved first, said Mirza Shawkat Ali, one of the Bangladeshi negotiators and director (climate change and international convention) at Department of Environment.

Moreover, the representatives of the developed countries agreed on a new climate finance goal based on the current $100 billion target, which was set in 2009, disappointing developing countries that termed the amount inadequate.

On the other hand, both the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) and the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) have separately called for dedicated funding primarily as grants, with the LDCs requesting $220 billion and AOSIS seeking $39 billion. Notably, despite their usual alignment with the G77 + China, both groups have taken an independent stance on this matter.

Saying developed countries are failing to ensure justice to vulnerable countries and fulfil their obligations, they demanded a genuine commitment to meeting the climate action needs of developing nations.

Prof Ainun Nishat, who is attending the COP29 in Baku, representing the Centre for Climate Change and Environmental Research of BRAC University, said, "This particular COP should focus on finance because, since 1992, it has been said that developed countries will fund the developing world, especially the non-developed nations."

"The demand was strongly raised in the 2015 Paris Agreement. From that, it is being demanded that developed countries pay $100 billion in climate finance a year," he said.

"In this year's summit, we can see that developing nations are not happy with the annual funding and that they want the amount to expand further to $100 billion per annum," he said.

Developed nations China and India, according to Prof Nishat, are the main emitters. "So, the role of these two countries needs to be taken into consideration."

"There has been an issue. It is not clear what the role of the new US president will be. So, the US delegation consisting of powerful discussants remained silent. But I think their stance will be clear in five to six days," he said.

Prof Nishat said that the summit involves 198 countries of the world and there is no voting. Every nation needs to express equal agreement. "So, we reckon that the progress in tackling the climate issues is not happening fast enough. Still, all countries are trying hard. The problems are tough, but the discussions and the process to make decisions are way tougher."

The biggest problem with climate finance is that its definition is flawed, he added.

UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell on Saturday (16 November) called on the G20 leaders to come forward to ensure more grants and concessional finance, make progress on debt relief, and push for additional multilateral development bank reforms.

He also said, "Climate impacts are already ripping shreds out of every G20 economy, wrecking lives, pummelling supply chains and food prices, and fanning inflation. Bolder climate action is basic self-preservation for every G20 economy. Without rapid cuts in emissions, no G20 economy will be spared from climate-driven economic carnage."