“Iregret to say that this document is nothing more than an optical illusion. This, in our opinion, will not address the enormity of the challenge we all face. Therefore, we oppose the adoption of this document,” said Chandini Raina, a Director in the Department of Economic Affairs and one of India’s key negotiators at COP29 (the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) held between November 11-24 in Baku, Azerbaijan.
Raina’s riposte was to protest the complete ignoring of the demands of the developing nations for mobilisation of $1.3 trillion (which is the broad calculation) starting immediately for climate finance. What the developed countries did instead was to force an agreement with a package of just $300 billion a year. To make matters worse, the package is to kickstart a decade down the line – from 2035!
Climate finance issues
“India does not accept the goal proposal in its present form. The amount that is proposed to be mobilised is abysmally poor. It is a paltry sum. It is not something that will enable conducive climate action that is necessary for the survival of our country,” Raina said to rousing applause from the large contingent from the `South` and the plentiful civil society delegates and institutions. Strangely, China which is the number one polluter, chose to keep silent and, by default, supports the West.
Called the ‘finance’ COP because of an agenda that was driven basically on resolving climate finance issues, the Baku gathering was to look at and agree upon climate finance goals beyond 2025. This finance essentially comes from the developed countries to climatevulnerable countries on an annual basis to fund climate action programmes.
At present the fund has a total value of $100 billion. When the $300 billion deal came up, India objected and was joined in the chorus by others including Nigeria, Bolivia, and Cuba. The Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) and Least Developed Countries (LDCs) went further and walked out of the venue.
Apart from the $1.3 billion that was put to acclamation by subterfuge, the COP29 also came up with what has been described as the Baku to Belem (COP30 venue in Brazil) pathway to debate the $1.3 trillion 2035 goal. The discussions will be followed up with reports in 2026 and 2027 with more strategic decisions to be made by 2030
Green Climate Fund
So what are the positives? Well, there are a few. The developed countries have, for example, agreed to triple the amounts to be channelled through Global funds like the Green Climate Fund although it is way below the $1.3 billion in demand. They have also agreed to drop the contentious clause insisting on voluntary contributions of developing countries as part of NCQG, which is the acronym for the rather high sounding ‘New Collective Quantified Goal on Climate Finance’, which has created all the hullabaloo at Baku.
COP29 also finalised the long-in-themaking carbon credit market rules for countries and companies to buy and sell carbon credits that will be earned through green initiatives. A centralised UN trading system is likely to be launched in 2025. The complex protocol to maintain the registry and prevent greenwashing are key elements that will determine the success of this programme. The carbon credit rules that come under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement will help ensure two critical elements – credibility and standardisation of carbon credits
Complex challenge “Today, we have unlocked one of the most complex and technical challenges in climate diplomacy. Article 6 is hard to understand, but its impacts will be clear in our everyday lives. It means coal plants decommissioned, wind farms built, and forests planted. It means a new wave of investment in the developing world,” said COP29 lead negotiator Yalchin Rafiyev.
According to Business Today, “India is set to operationalise a carbon trading market by FY27 but needs to define the terms, structure, and compliance measures. The delay was also attributed to the non-finalisation of rules under Article 6. The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) has launched guidelines to shape the future of the Indian Carbon Market (ICM).” COP29’s decision to ratify the rules for these trades will help India fast-track its carbon market.
