Several draft texts released early Thursday in Baku are capturing the attention of civil society observers at COP29 who have been holding out to see an ambitious and fair new climate finance goal, two days before the negotiations come to a close.
The new finance goal and the Mitigation Working Group texts in their current form currently fail to provide a global roadmap for alignment with a 1.5-degree future, which requires urgent and quality funding in the scale of trillions in order to replace fossil fuels with clean renewable energy.
Andreas Sieber, 350.org Associate Director of Policy and Campaigns said: “The new climate finance and mitigation draft texts presented at COP29 today fail to deliver what is needed to transform the lives of those most impacted by the climate crisis and have done the least to cause it. Will governments recall this moment too, when the next climate disaster hits their country? A fast, fairly funded fossil fuel phase out is what we need reflected in these texts. We demand this is corrected; the world is watching.
“By the end of the UN climate talks, we must see at least a trillion dollars in public finance on the table. This historic debt that rich countries owe will enable all nations to take action on climate at home and meet the collective goal agreed last year at COP28 – to triple renewable energy, and transition away from fossil fuels. Right now, we only see cowardice and a void in leadership, ignoring the undeniable science that we can’t keep polluting our planet with dirty oil, gas and coal.
The time to course correct is now – the European Union and other rich countries must stop playing poker with the planet and humankind’s future at stake. It’s time to put their cards on the table and commit real, transformative funding – no more excuses, no more delays, it’s time.”
Joseph Sikulu, 350.org Pacific Director and Pacific Climate Warrior said: “We hoped to see a draft text today that would show rich nations putting their money where their mouth is and responding to the demands from the Global South. What we got is a text with no clear grant-based core money. Nothing less than one trillion dollars in grants per year will be enough to see those most impacted by climate change on a just transition towards a safe, equitable future. Rich countries must stop dithering, and start delivering – this is not charity, it’s time for them to pay their debt.
“The new climate finance goal isn’t just an arbitrary number, it’s a lifeline for climate vulnerable nations like mine that are drowning – literally – due to a crisis we did not cause. But despite it all, we are fighting. Rich countries need to start doing the same – be the first ones to commit to the rapid phase out of fossil fuels agreed upon at last year’s climate talks in Dubai. Financial commitments must also be paired with ambitious goals to transition to a renewable economy. There is still time for this COP to deliver, do not leave us behind once again, said Sikulu.
