After ‘paltry’ funding offers, day of chaos, fury at COP29

Tensions escalated further as climate activists confronted US climate envoy John Podesta, accusing the United States of “a legacy of burning up the planet” and failing to pay its fair share of climate finance

Negotiators returned to the table late on Saturday in a last-ditch effort to salvage the COP29 climate talks, hours after dramatic walkouts by developing nations and heated protests threatened to derail the conference entirely.

The draft also controversially “encourages” developing country contributions through South-South cooperation while affirming that voluntary contributions won’t affect any party’s development status - language that many see as an attempt to shift responsibilities. (REUTERS)

The renewed push for consensus came at the end of a turbulent day that saw delegates from the world’s most vulnerable nations storming out of negotiations, climate activists heckling the US climate envoy, and workers beginning to dismantle conference furnishings even as diplomatic efforts continued.

“We’ve just walked out. We came here to this COP for a fair deal. We feel that we haven’t been heard,” Cedric Schuster, the Samoan chairman of the Alliance of Small Island States, had declared earlier in the day, leading an exodus of delegates from nations most threatened by rising seas.

The crisis deepened when a leaked 3 pm draft text, proposing $300 billion annual climate finance by 2035, sparked further anger after Friday’s offer of $250bn — both significantly short of the $1 trillion developing countries sought. “The current deal is unacceptable for us,” said Evans Njewa, chair of the Least Developed Countries group, as his delegation left the room. Colombia’s environment minister Susana Mohamed characterized the departures not as protests but as expressions of being “highly dissatisfied.”

Tensions escalated further as climate activists confronted US climate envoy John Podesta, accusing the United States of “a legacy of burning up the planet” and failing to pay its fair share of climate finance.

The leaked draft, which was up for discussion afresh and was being considered till the time of going to print, attempts to bridge divides by calling for “all actors to work together” in scaling up finance to reach $1.3 trillion annually by 2035, while reaffirming Article 9 of the Paris Agreement. However, developing nations argue the language dilutes rich countries’ obligations by replacing their duty to “provide” finance with merely “taking the lead.”

“Where is Article 9.1 of the Paris Agreement in this?” questioned a developing country negotiator. “The Paris Agreement states that developed country Parties shall provide financial resources to assist developing country Parties and not that developed countries will lead. The quantum is also an eyewash.”

The draft also controversially “encourages” developing country contributions through South-South cooperation while affirming that voluntary contributions won’t affect any party’s development status - language that many see as an attempt to shift responsibilities.

As the conference stretched more than a day past its scheduled conclusion, COP29 president Mukhtar Babayev urged bleary-eyed delegates to seek consensus. “I know that none of us want to leave Baku without a good outcome,” he said, calling on nations to “bridge the remaining divide.”

To be sure, the contentious aspects are the discussions around the next round of climate finance, called the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG). UN reports estimate around $1.3 trillion is needed for developing nations to adapt to climate impacts and transition to clean energy. The current offer of $300 billion, up from an initial $250 billion rejected on Friday, falls far short of the $600 billion some developing nations demanded in grants as against an offer mentioning “variety of sources”.

The draft proposes monitoring progress through biannual reports starting 2028, but developing nations argue this provides insufficient guarantees of actual delivery. The text acknowledges the need for adaptation funding and addressing loss and damage but offers no concrete commitments.

Brazil, which will host next year’s crucial COP30, made a passionate plea for progress. “After the difficult experience that we’re having here in Baku, we need to reach some outcome that is minimally acceptable in line with the emergency we’re facing,” environment minister Marina Silva told delegates.

Wealthy nations argue that higher direct government funding is politically unrealistic, particularly with Donald Trump’s election in the US and right-wing backlashes against climate action in several Western countries. The EU has attempted to link increased funding to stronger commitments on fossil fuel phase-out, facing opposition from Saudi Arabia.

The breakdown threatens next year’s critical climate commitments, with updated Nationally Determined Contributions due by February 2025. Brazil’s President Lula had warned that “COP30 will be our last chance to avoid an irreversible rupture in the climate system.”

“The extended climate talks lay bare the deep inequities in the multilateral process,” said Harjeet Singh from the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty Initiative, according to news reports. “Developed countries must commit trillions, not empty promises—anything less makes them squarely responsible for the failure of these talks and the betrayal of billions across the globe.”

As Saturday drew to a close, negotiations had splintered into several separate huddles of nations, with talks oscillating between hopes for shuttle diplomacy and the possibility of postponing decisions to next year. However, the return of delegates to formal negotiations offered a glimmer of hope for a last-minute breakthrough.

With 2023 set to be the hottest year ever recorded, the outcome at Baku could determine whether the world can maintain momentum toward meaningful climate action or risk a breakdown in international cooperation just as climate impacts intensify.