It's Day 8 of COP29

Island Nations Sound the Alarm: COP29 Wrestles with Climate Finance, Fossil Fuel Phase-Out, and Global Accountability

Credit: Marcus Spisk, Unsplash

President Surangel Whipps Jr of the Republic of Palau, an island nation in the western Pacific, today described the climate crisis as ‘a relentless, unyielding force that attacks our food security, our economy, our culture and our very existence’.  Island nations in the Pacific are running out of time, and Whipps Jr bemoaned the fact that extreme weather events were an enemy which ‘strikes hardest at those who have contributed the least to global warming’.

The talks at COP29 have received a boost from the G20 negotiations in Rio de Janeiro. Climate was high on the agenda, in spite of reluctance from Saudi Arabia, Russia, and India, and all G20 members reconfirmed their support for the COP28 resolution to ‘transition away from fossil fuels’. This agreement provides a significant boost to talks at COP29 – despite no direct impact, this clarification ensures that all G20 members are ensuring the COP28 resolution to transition away from fossil fuels is built on and not abandoned. Given the controversy surrounding fossil fuel lobbyists and representatives present at COP29, a reaffirmation of intent from the world’s wealthiest nations is certainly welcome.

The G20’s statement did state that trillions of dollars in climate finance would be needed, but that it would come ‘from all sources’ – not the commitment from richer nations that many developing countries wanted. Adonia Ayebare, for example, G77’s Ugandan Chairman, said that the G77 were ‘not comfortable’ with the vague wording and reiterated the importance that climate finance was provided through grants and not loans.

Others, however, have been far more positive. Mohamed Adow, a Kenyan climate activist and founder of the Power Shift Africa group, said that ‘We needed to see a strong signal from the G20, and we got that on finance’. Simon Stiell, Climate Chief of the United Nations, also declared that ‘G20 leaders have sent a clear message to their negotiators at COP29: do not leave Baku without a successful new finance goal. This is in every country’s clear interests’.

US congressman Frank Pallone, a supporter of Azerbaijan’s rival Armenia, has accused Azerbaijan’s government of organising an attempted assault on him. He described how hostile local media confronted him before a crowd of fifty ‘thugs’ waited outside his hotel, with local police refusing to help or get involved. Democrat senator Ed Markey, a staunch climate advocate, corroborated Pallone’s accusation by affirming that he needed an ever-present bodyguard – even when inside his hotel. Markey joined the extensive list of those accusing Azerbaijan of intensifying repression and ‘greenwashing’ its human rights and climate record by hosting the COP29 summit.

One proposed measure over the last few days to reach the necessary climate finance total is through ‘voluntary contributions’. The decision-making process concerning how to actually raise the needed funds for climate finance is currently the stumbling block negotiators face at the summit. Josh Gabbattiss of Carbon Brief astutely points out that countries like China already voluntarily donate a lot of money which could be classified as climate finance but, under the UN system, isn’t recognised as such.

An announcement from the governments of the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Colombia clarified that the three countries have joined the international Coalition on Phasing Out Fossil Fuel Incentives Including Subsidies. This Dutch-led coalition of governments is a multilateral attempt to remove barriers and facilitate transparency with regards to phasing out fossil fuel subsidies. As of this afternoon, it now has 16 member countries.

Martina Otto at the UN Environment Programme stated that ‘reducing methane emissions this decade is our emergency brake’ in the fight against climate change. The COP29 presidency announced a new drive today to cut methane emissions from landfill leaks, which are responsible for roughly 20% of human-related emissions of methane.

Senior White House officials announced that the US will contribute $325 million to the Climate Investment Funds, a set of World Bank managed trust funds for low and middle income countries which are available for climate action. This new contribution will go to a fund specifically used for low-carbon energy projects and brings the US’ total contributions to $1.8 billion. Germany’s special climate envoy Jennifer Morgan also announced an immediate contribution of 60 million euros to the international adaptation fund, and the Australian government the equivalent of 32.5 million USD to the loss and damage fund. Although relatively small sums compared to the trillion needed, these commitments may help to build trust amongst nations who must reach a consensus.

Amar Bhattacharya, a visiting professor at the London School of Economics and the Executive Secretary of the UN’s independent high-level expert group on climate finance believes that although reaching 1 trillion per year on climate finance will be politically challenging, it is ‘absolutely feasible’, subsequently saying ‘I do believe it can be done’.

Another talking point arising from the G20 meeting is an apparent agreement that it will be essential for governments ‘to ensure that ultra-high net-worth individuals are effectively taxed’. The communique further suggested that cooperation in this endeavour could involve ‘exchanging best practices, encouraging debates around tax principles, and devising antiavoidance mechanisms’. Solidarity Levies are another potential option, with a shipping levy the closest to being agreed upon (according to Reuters). Governments are set to debate a series of measures at an April meeting of the International Maritime Organisation. A levy of $150 – 300 per ton, the figure suggested by the majority of Pacific and Caribbean nations, could generate $127 billion per year in climate finance.

Saudi Arabian negotiators are apparently repeatedly blocking negotiations at COP29, in an attempt to avoid a commitment similar to the one agreed a year earlier at COP28 – namely, to ‘transition away from fossil fuels’. The Earth Negotiations Bulletin is a reporting service with special access to the COP29 negotiating rooms, and they report that Saudi negotiators are responsible for at least five instances of obstructionism ranging from the proposed deal on climate finance and cutting carbon emissions to a registry for national climate pledges.

This obstructionism comes despite the nation’s people being highly vulnerable to global warming. A 2023 report from the King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Centre stated that ‘Saudi Arabia’s environmental parameters are already at the verge of liveability’, and the Guardian reports that over 1300 people died due to extreme heat during the June hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia.

To end on a more positive note, the French government has formalised a new decree mandating solar panel installations on parking lots bigger than 1,500 square metres. The decree further states that at least 50% of parking areas must be covered with either solar shelters or green canopies.