The concluding moments of COP29 underscored significant strides yet revealed persistent divides. The New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) to mobilise $300 billion annually by 2035 for climate action represents progress, but its sufficiency remains contested, especially among vulnerable nations.
Simultaneously, the deferral of key mitigation texts, coupled with Saudi Arabia’s successful blocking of fossil fuel transition language, highlights the ongoing influence of oil-producing nations in shaping global climate ambitions.
As debates extended into the weekend, the outcomes at Baku offer a foundation for future negotiations but raise critical questions about the feasibility of delivering on the 1.5°C goal. Will COP30 in Brazil close the gap between ambition and actionable progress?
Water for Climate Action: Bridging Climate, Biodiversity, and Desertification
- COP29 launched the Water for Climate Action initiative, endorsed by nearly 50 countries, to address climate impacts on water basins and promote regional and international cooperation.
- The declaration urges integrating water-focused mitigation and adaptation into national climate policies, including Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and National Adaptation Plans (NAPs).
- Countries and stakeholders, including WWF, Water.org, and the Islamic Development Bank, will collaborate on sharing data and developing basin-wide climate scenarios.
- The Baku Dialogue on Water for Climate Action fosters collaboration across COPs to tackle interconnected crises like climate change, biodiversity loss, and desertification.
- COP29 President Mukhtar Babayev emphasised water as a key link between global crises, with the initiative aiming to embed water priorities in the climate agenda.
“Water is the link that flows between the climate, biodiversity and desertification crises” – COP29 President Mukhtar Babayev
COP29 Finance Deal: Progress Amid Persistent Challenges
- Developed nations pledged $300 billion annually by 2035 under the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG), beginning in 2026, replacing the overdue $100 billion target.
- The $300 billion forms part of a larger $1.3 trillion annual goal, incorporating public and private funding to support clean energy transitions and climate resilience.
- While some hailed the agreement as a vital insurance policy for humanity, developing nations, including Cuba and India, criticised the amount as inadequate and ill-suited to their immediate needs.
- Groups like the Marshall Islands emphasised the urgency of accessible, obstacle-free funds for the most climate-affected regions.
- Climate chief Simon Stiell stressed the need for timely, full payments to make the agreement effective, framing it as crucial for sustaining the global clean energy boom and protecting lives.
“This deal will keep the clean energy boom growing and protect billions of lives” – UN climate chief Simon Stiell
COP29 Finance Deal: Success for Some and Compromise for the Rest
- Despite calls for broader donor participation, the text only “encourages” contributions from wealthier developing nations like China and Gulf states, keeping the core responsibility on developed countries.
- The Azerbaijan presidency faced criticism for introducing the $250 billion initial figure late in negotiations, forcing developing countries into compromises to secure an agreement.
- Developing nations agreed to forego sub-goals for adaptation and loss and damage funding, with a promise to triple annual outflows from UN climate funds by 2030 instead.
“Doesn’t even come close to the transformational finance needed to tackle the climate crisis” – Champa Patel, executive director of governments and policy with the Climate Group
COP29 Finance Deal: Fossil Fuels Excluded from the Negotiation Table
- COP29 avoided reaffirming COP28’s fossil fuel transition pledge, with Saudi Arabia successfully blocking fossil fuel-specific language. This underscores the ongoing power of oil-producing nations to dilute global decarbonisation efforts, raising doubts about meeting ambitious climate goals.
- Deferring key emissions-reduction decisions tied to the Global Stocktake (GST) until mid-2025 delays progress on ambitious Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
- Excluding plans for 1,500 GW energy storage and 25 million km of power grids by 2030 undermines renewable energy goals and infrastructure readiness.
- Canada and Chile criticised COP29’s perceived backtracking, highlighting tensions over the gap between commitments and actionable progress.
“Had hoped for a more ambitious outcome – on both finance and mitigation – to meet the great challenge we face. But this agreement provides a base on which to build” – UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres
