COP29 climate deal sparks outrage for many, hope for some

Anger and frustration from developing countries vulnerable to climate impacts are likely to linger after the conclusion of the COP29 climate summit in Baku, Azerbaijan, as nations adopted a US$300 billion global finance target to help poorer nations cope with climate change, a deal that many recipient countries said was woefully inadequate.

Global North countries, often historical emitters responsible for global warming, agreed Sunday to pledge $300 billion a year by 2035 to their developing counterparts to stave off the worst effects of climate change - less than a quarter of the acknowledged $1.3 trillion needed annually to reduce emissions and build resilience in vulnerable countries.

The $300 billion figure also represents an increase of $200 billion per year over the 2009 agreement, which is set to expire.

Vocal disappointment and anger from Global South countries was expressed at the closing plenary, with some national representatives calling the adoption of the new finance package "insulting."

“We are extremely disappointed,” said Indian negotiator Chandni Raina, who called the figure “abysmal.”

Her Cuban counterpart, Pedro Luis Pedroso, described the deal as “environmental colonialism,” pointing out that, when factoring in today’s inflation, the pledged funding is lower than the $100 billion agreed to in 2009. Bolivia’s negotiator called the deal “insulting” to developing nations.

Some Western representatives were more optimistic.

“COP29 will be remembered as a new era of climate finance,” said the EU's top climate negotiator, Wopke Hoekstra, calling the target amount "ambitious" and "achievable."

Some experts told VOA that the structure and composition of the $300 billion deal is more important than the actual monetary figure. The final agreement allows for both public and private sources of funds to be tapped to bolster climate preparedness efforts in developing countries.

Negotiators for the developing world expressed concern that private sources of funding could come in the form of more loans, which could lead to difficult debt accumulation for poorer nations, rather than in the preferred form of grants. Global South countries argued for a new target for green finance and have consistently called for such climate finance to come in the form of public grants.

This past week's tense and fraught negotiations dragged on for two extra days and included at least one episode in which negotiators from small island states and some of the world's poorest nations walked out of a meeting room with wealthy nations in protest. They claimed that their voices and perspectives were not being heard.

“This COP has been a disaster for the developing world,” said Mohammed Adow, director of the Kenya-based climate and energy research group Power Shift Africa.

“It’s a betrayal of both people and planet, by wealthy countries, who claim to take climate change seriously.”

The adopted finance package also states that the next conference - likely COP30 in Belem, Brazil, in late 2025 - will discuss a further roadmap on how to reach the trillion-dollar figure.

Independent South African climate consultant Gillian Hamilton called the $300 billion core funding target "insufficient," especially for building resilience to climate impacts - also known as climate adaptation.

“Developed nations should have shown more leadership and transparency,” Hamilton told VOA. “The biggest emitters need to rapidly decrease their emissions so that adaptation costs for developing countries don’t increase exponentially.”

Activists have staged several environmental protests a day in Baku during the past week-plus of meetings.

Although developing country negotiators repeatedly asked for climate finance in the form of grants rather than loans, developed countries stopped short of guaranteeing that in the final agreement.

The agreement adopted Sunday does, however, acknowledge that sources of adaptation finance should be public and transparent.

With 2024 set to be the hottest year on record, the world has seen a series of climate disasters, from devastating floods in the Sahel, East Africa, Nepal and Spain to Hurricane Helene in the Americas, droughts in the Mediterranean and typhoons in the western Pacific.

Despite the disasters and renewed calls to fund climate-resilient infrastructure across the Global South to protect against rising sea levels and wildfires, funding has been inadequate for years and adaptation efforts continue to lag behind needs, according to a November report by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

The report calls on nations to step up by adopting a strong new collective quantified goal for climate finance and by including stronger adaptation components in their next round of climate pledges, or Nationally Determined Contributions, due in early 2025.

Adaptation projects include developing more advanced disaster warning systems, reforestation, and building catchment mechanisms to ensure water security in regions most affected by climate change.

At COP29, Germany pledged $62 billion to the adaptation fund; France highlighted its pledge of $2.9 billion for adaptation in 2023; the U.S. said it pays $3 billion into the fund each year. A total of 14 Global North countries, including Spain, Sweden, South Korea and Switzerland, pledged $300 million this year, according to a separate negotiating text at the conference.

Despite pledges in recent years, countries haven't fully met their commitments. This year, for example, more than $122 million in promised financial support for poor countries to adapt to climate risks is still in limbo, despite being a stated priority at recent COP meetings.

At the Brazil meeting next November, countries will be tasked with ironing out the details of a global carbon trading system governed by a centralized UN regulatory body. They will also try to find a way for wealthy, developed countries to meet the $1.3 trillion target to support efforts in the Global South to deal with the consequences of climate disasters.

A key component will be the review of national climate plans due in February. The United Kingdom, Brazil and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are among the nations that last week sought to get ahead of the February deadline and shared some of the targets in their national climate change preparedness plans.

Harjeet Singh, director of global engagement for the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty, said it is likely that "most" nations will not meet the February deadline to submit their updated plans to combat climate change.

Argentina's future participation is unclear after hardline President Javier Milei, who has called climate change a hoax, reportedly told his government delegates here to pack up and leave the negotiations on the third day of the summit.

Asked by VOA whether rich nations would follow through on their promises to lead efforts to raise $300 billion in climate finance, Singh said the key was their "willingness, as the money has always been there."

Some humanitarian organizations welcomed the Baku efforts.

“As we look ahead, we encourage all countries to use the coming weeks and months to increase their ambition in their new national climate plans – also known as National Determined Contributions 3.0 – and in their National Adaptation Plans. It is essential that these plans prioritize the rights and wellbeing of children,” the head of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) said in a statement on Sunday.

“Children cannot afford for world leaders to backtrack on their promises when storms are destroying their schools, wildfires are harming their lungs, their homes and health services are being washed away, and life-sustaining crops are dying from droughts,” said Catherine Russell, UNICEF Executive Director.

The UN agency urged world leaders to begin work immediately to ensure that the world can reconvene at COP30 “with the sense of urgency and ambition required to meet our promises to the world’s children.”

Also on Sunday, the Secretary General of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), Jagan Chapagain, welcomed the agreement at COP29.

“The new global climate finance goal's success will be judged by whether increased funds reach the communities that need them most, and by whether they reach them fast,” Chapagain said.

“Effective implementation is crucial - delivery on what's been promised. The agreement in Baku creates a pathway, but trust and action go hand in hand.”

He warned that communities need implementation and action now.

Ahead of COP29, a United Nations report warned that people forced to flee war, violence and persecution find themselves increasingly on the front lines of the global climate crisis, exposed to a deadly combination of threats but without the funding and support to adapt. Three-quarters of the world's more than 123 million forcibly displaced people live in countries that are highly vulnerable to climate change. More than 60 million are displaced in places affected by both conflict and severe climate hazards.

Some information for this report provided by VOA.