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The Conference of Parties ends with disappointing ‘optical illusion’ by developed countries
View(s):By Tharushi Weerasinghe
The 29th Conference of Parties came to a disappointing end in Baku, Azerbaijan last week with a deal that many developing countries have criticised severely.
Developing countries had called for developed countries to raise US$ 1.3 tn annually to combat the impacts of climate change but at the end of the fractured talks which even included a walkout, the developed countries only agreed to channel “at least” US$ 300 bn annually. India rejected the adoption of the deal or the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) by calling it an “optical illusion” and was joined by other developing countries like Nigeria who called the outcome a “joke”.
Representatives from the Alliance of Small Island States also expressed their frustration that developing countries were constantly having to compromise in the name of “multilateralism.”
This year, Sri Lanka’s focus was less on negotiations and more on bilateral meetings and ad hoc negotiations.
Participating world leaders and delegates pose for a family photo during the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29) in Baku on November 12, 2024. (AFP)
“We have initiated bilateral agreements with Japan, Korea, and Singapore on the exploration and regularisation of carbon markets with a national focal point,” said Leel Randeni, Director of Climate Change. As many of the conference’s high-level meetings happened during the parliamentary elections in Sri Lanka, no representations were made at the world leader forums this year. Mr Randeni noted that Sri Lanka has made a bid to be the next host of the Climate Vulnerability Forum which was initiated in Egypt at COP27 in 2022. “We also initiated discussions for a climate-induced disaster recovery support fund collection and we are hoping that despite the disappointing overall pledge, we will be able to find the support we need through these other avenues.”
The Green Climate Fund, which supports readiness projects which support developing countries with institutional, technological, and capacity gaps in climate actions with individual projects that span out for about a year per undertaking, also changed its modalities last year. According to Mr Randeni, the team is currently formulating a new plan based on discussions during the COP. “We are taking a programmatic approach to ensure that our projects are interconnected and focusing on the medium- and long-term outcomes.”
Apart from this, Sri Lanka has also sought support for its Provincial Adaptation Plans, a province-based approach to its National Adaptation Plan 2025-2034 which will be implemented by a provincial climate board.
“A new element this year was the introduction of culture-based climate action programmes initiated by the Azerbaijan government which we have to submit the plans for and target achievements with,” Mr Randeni noted and added that support has been sought from the Azerbaijan government for climate resilient tourism development in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka did not have a pavilion at the conference this year and had only a limited delegation due to the government being in a transition period at the time. “Compared to the peer group countries, Sri Lanka has a long way to go in terms of engaging in the COP process and the main obstruction remains to be the constant change in Ministers and Ministry Secretaries,” observed the Commonwealth Asia Youth Alliance Chairperson Bodh Maathura. The Chairperson noted that the national delegation this time, while focusing on bilaterals to bring back technical, financial, and non-financial resources to strengthen climate resilience in Sri Lanka, also remained very receptive to all the non-ministry resource people that were assisting them at the negotiations. “A significant improvement is that they were open to recommendations on building a young pool of trained negotiators to continue following and make meaningful interventions to secure Sri Lanka’s stances within the negotiations, which gives us hope for better representation at COP30,” he noted.
Mr Maathura added that diplomatic deadlocks at COPs were becoming disappointing, while acknowledging that the process followed by the UNFCCC was one of the only mechanisms that ensured the participation of all parties involved, and the overwhelming representations made by those with vested interests were a problem. “The high number of oil lobbyists present annually, hinder the process, and back-to-back COPs in oil-producing countries have shifted the narratives and made developing countries and their allies lose trust in the system,” he noted. He argued, however, that lobbying efforts should not focus on shutting down spaces where everyone can come together, but should instead advocate for developed countries to pay their fair share.
He insisted that better discernment was required where the decisions regarding hosts was concerned, “This, though a small change, sets the precedent and signals our common goals and sentiments.”
“The UN must stop hosting COPs in petrol states and countries notorious for human rights violations and limited civic space, as has been the trend in recent years,” said Harjeet Singh, Climate Activist and Global Engagement Director for the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty Initiative. He emphasised that as the international custodian of human rights, the UN must confront these countries, asserting that climate justice cannot exist without human rights.
Mr Singh called on the UN to hold countries accountable by openly naming and shaming those derailing climate negotiations. “It’s time to call a spade a spade,” he said. However, he argued that abandoning the COP platform was not an option, as it remains the only global stage where all nations, big or small, have an equal voice. “We need to reorient the system without a doubt, because right now it serves fossil fuel lobbyists and polluters, not the most vulnerable.”
Mr Singh also criticised the approach of developed countries, particularly their role in stalling negotiations. While the final text acknowledged the overdue need for climate financing, he noted that developed nations failed to commit the necessary resources. “Who delayed responding to our $1 trillion demand until the last hours of negotiation? Developed countries,” he said. He held that earlier clarity from these nations could have made the talks more effective. “Multilateralism is being killed by developed countries,” he insisted.
Developing countries did manage to secure some progress, such as broadening the contributor base to include large economies that, while not historically responsible for the climate crisis, will need to reduce emissions as they rise in the future. However, Mr Singh noted that “pressuring these nations now is unfair, especially when developed countries have yet to fulfil their own commitments and on this point, developing nations pushed back successfully.”
The document also highlights the need for public and concessional financing. “While there’s no clear distinction in the $300 billion target between grants and loans, the acknowledgement that grants are essential for adaptation and loss and damage is a step forward — it underscores that loans are not a sustainable solution for these countries,” he noted. Another positive outcome is the emphasis on channelling significant resources through established mechanisms like the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and the Adaptation Fund, which developing nations fought hard to set up and strengthen.
Although the financing target is set until 2035, a review mechanism in 2030 provides an opportunity to revisit both implementation and the scale of funding. “While these small hooks offer a foundation to build on, overall, the outcome has been profoundly disappointing and we are deeply disappointed and calling this outcome a betrayal.”
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