COP29: Which are the main issues at the UN Climate Summit in Baku

The U.N. Climate Summit COP29, which will take place in Baku on November 15th, has been called the "climate financing COP" because its main goal is to decide how much money each year should be allocated to help developing countries deal with climate-related expenses.

This discussion may be difficult following the reelection of Donald Trump as former U.S. president on Tuesday. A climate denier, Trump's campaign promised to remove the United States from the historic 2015 Paris Agreement for fighting climate change a second.

Delegates will also look to further other agreements made at previous summits.

The top items on the agenda for the summit from Nov. 11-22 are listed below.

Climate Finance

This year's summit will be dominated by the acronym NCQG, which stands for New Collective Quantified Goal.

This is the new climate finance target that will kick in after the current pledge of $100 billion expires this year.

Since 2020, wealthy nations have not always met this annual goal. This has led to a growing distrust among climate-vulnerable countries.

Rich nations insist that the money can't come from their own budgets, as COP29 aims for a higher target in the future.

They are instead discussing a much more complex effort, which would involve reforming global multilateral lending in a way that reduces climate-related financial risks and encourages more private capital.

Uncertain is how much the rich nations will contribute to the annual total. Unresolved also is the question of whether nations in rapid development, such as China and the Middle East Gulf oil-producing states, should contribute. This position has been championed both by the United States & European Union.

Reforming the global financial system is a way for countries to increase the amount of climate finance they receive each year. U.N. agencies estimate trillions of dollars in climate finance each year, but Azerbaijani officials said that a figure of "hundreds and billions" is more likely to be approved by consensus.

TRANSITION TO FOSSIL-FUEL

The COP28 summit held in Dubai last year ended with the countries agreeing to "transition from fossil fuels" in energy systems.

Since then, fossil fuel consumption and exports have increased globally. New areas for oil and natural gas production have also been approved in countries such as Azerbaijan and Namibia.

Negotiators say that because countries and companies are unsure of their commitment to abandon coal, oil, and gas, COP29 is unlikely to produce timelines or stronger words on fossil fuels. However, some countries may push for a halt to new coal plant permits.

As a means to reduce the demand for fossil fuels, countries will also discuss progress on their pledge to double energy efficiency and triple renewable energy.

RULES FOR THE CARBON MARKET

The governments are keen to settle rules on trading carbon credits that can be earned by preserving forests and other natural carbon sinks.

These credits can be traded on the open market, even though they are intended to be offsets for nations' emissions. Business leaders expect COP29 will set rules to guarantee transparency and environmental integrity for projects logged using the Paris Agreement Crediting Mechanism.

The PACM supervisory board has yet to make a decision on key issues, including whether or not credits should be assessed before trading and when they can be revoked.

Transparency is a key to success

Azerbaijan is hoping that countries will submit first climate action reports at the summit, ahead of a deadline on Dec. 31, but it's unclear whether they will.

The so-called Biennial Reports on Transparency (BTRs), are intended to show a country's progress towards its climate goals, and the amount of work that needs to be done to set new goals by February. The U.N. stated last week that national pledges for cutting emissions are still far below what is required.

The BTRs can also provide insight into the amount of finance that is needed by developing countries to transition their economies from fossil fuels, and adapt to a warming world.

Focus on ADAPTATION

Last year, countries committed to guidelines for national plans that would help people adapt to disruptions in climate such as rising sea levels, warmer days or parched farms.

The framework for adaptation is lacking in details. For example, it does not include quantifiable goals for assessing progress or strategies to link projects with climate financing.

During COP29, countries hope to set specific adaptation goals.

Money for Loss and Damage

About $660 million was raised by the newly established Fund for Responding To Loss and Damage. It will have its headquarters in the Philippines.

Climate-vulnerable nations will ask wealthy nations to contribute more.

(source: Reuters)