‘We are on the road to ruin,’ COP29 President Mukhtar Babayev said.
As delegates convened in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Nov. 11 for the 2024 U.N. climate change conference (also called COP29), high on the agenda was a deal to provide up to $1 trillion in annual climate finance for developing countries, replacing the previous target of $100 billion.
In 2009, developed countries pledged to mobilize $100 billion annually by 2020 for climate action in developing countries. Under the 2015 Paris Agreement, this goal was extended to 2025, with an agreement to establish a new target for the period after 2025.
The United Nations stated earlier this year that raising the annual climate finance target beyond the $100 billion goal was now essential, noting that
$6 trillion will be needed to support developing countries’ climate action plans by 2030.
In a statement on Nov. 11, the U.N. stated that only
sufficient financing would ensure “the protection of human rights from the negative impacts of climate change.”
“We are on the road to ruin,” COP29 President Mukhtar Babayev said during the Nov. 11 opening of COP29. “Whether you see them or not, people are suffering in the shadows. They are dying in the dark. And they need more than compassion. More than prayers and paperwork. They are crying out for leadership and action.”
U.N. Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell
urged leaders to “reform the global financial system.”
“So let’s dispense with the idea that climate finance is charity,” Stiell said. “An ambitious new climate finance goal is entirely in the self-interest of every single nation, including the largest and wealthiest.
“Here in Baku, we must get international carbon markets up and running, by finalizing Article 6.”
Article 6 is a key Paris Agreement mechanism designed to regulate global carbon trading.
The
Loss and Damage Fund, a proposal aiming to secure financial support from wealthy nations for climate-related initiatives for developing countries, remains another top agenda item.
“We need to move forward on mitigation, so targets from Dubai are realized. ... And we must continue to improve the new mechanisms for financial and technical support on loss and damage,” he said.
The United States is expected to renew its focus on fossil fuel expansion under the incoming Trump administration. President-elect Donald Trump has promised to reduce electricity and natural gas prices through increased production and the dismantling of the Green New Deal, which he has characterized as “
socialist.”
The incoming U.S. administration
is expected to prioritize domestic energy production—including oil, natural gas, coal, and nuclear power—while streamlining permitting processes and removing market restrictions on fossil fuels.
Marc Vanheukelen, the European Union’s climate ambassador from 2019 to 2023, said U.S. disengagement from climate initiatives could cause other countries to backpedal on pledges.
“People will be saying, ‘Well, the U.S. is the second biggest emitter. It’s the biggest economy in the world. ... If they don’t set themselves an ambitious target, why would we?’” he said.
Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
