The first week of COP29 wrapped up on Saturday 16 November with an endorsement of the 'Early Warnings For All' initiative and a call to action to use the power of communication technologies to protect communities around the world from increasingly dangerous weather.
Saturday 16 November
As well as the discussion of the need to harness digital technologies to ensure that early warnings are accurate, accessible and reach everyone, leaving no one behind, the Agriculture Innovation Mechanism for Scale (AIM for Scale) unveiled its first-ever Innovation Package, aimed at providing weather information to help farmers adapt to the impacts of climate change. Future Innovation Packages will expand efforts to scale additional solutions addressing the interconnected challenges of climate change, food security and agriculture.
The event "Mountain Areas and Glaciers: Italian and International Research Activities for Monitoring and Conservation" also took place which aimed to promote national research activities and international collaborations on climate monitoring of mountain areas and glaciers, highlighting research activities in Italy and globally through cooperation with international research institutions and their impact on sustainable development cooperation.
Another event "From the International Year of Glaciers' Preservation 2025 towards Decade of Action for Cryospheric Sciences 2025-2034: Synergies and Opportunities", leveraged the momentum from 2025 to build a solid foundation for the decade. It focused on scientific collaboration, policy integration and community actions. Further discussions centered on raising the profile of science and advancing scientific research to tackle cryosphere-related challenges globally. It highlighted the critical role of glaciers and the cryosphere in climate regulation, water resources and sustainable development while emphasising the urgent need for action.
Sunday 17 November
The Sunday was a rest day at COP29, but with critics calling COP29 "stuck", it was hoped that the second week provided more results.
Mohamed Adow, Director of the Power Shift Africa Thinktank, said: "This has been the worst first week of a COP in my 15 years attending these summits. There’s been limited progress … I sense frustration, especially among the developing country groups here at COP. The presidency isn’t giving any hope for how the world will strike the right compromises".
Monday 18 November
Monday started with reports from news agency AFP that the UN Secretary General António Guterres called on the G20 leaders who are gathering in Rio de Janeiro to rescue the stalled concurrent UN climate talks in COP29 by showing "leadership" on cutting emissions. Guterres attended the G20 summit on Monday told a press conference: "A successful outcome at COP29 is still within reach, but it will require leadership and compromise, namely from the G20 countries". Guterres called on the G20 group to lead by example, as they account for 80% of global emissions.
Representatives from Vanuatu and Tuvalu have sharply criticised Australia over its plans for a massive gas industry expansion in Western Australia, saying it could ultimately result in 125 times more greenhouse gas emissions that their island nations release in a year. The islands called on Australia to stop approving new fossil fuel developments, including a proposal to extend the life of Woodside's North West Shelf gas facility until 2070.
The Loss and Damage collaboration published an open letter to the COP presidency, about the negotiations for a new collective quantified goal on climate finance (NCQG). The letter is essentially a plea that points out that: "emissions in developed countries continued to grow, leaving a diminishing slice of the global carbon budget for developing countries to meet their social and development needs, which corresponds to an enormous financial debt owed to developing countries by developed countries".
"We are counting on you to get us back on track towards creating a world in which all humans, all other species and all ecosystems are thriving on a healthy planet at this COP". The letter goes on to call on the COP presidency to an NCQG:
The UN Climate Chief Simon Stiell said that adaptation is "the difference between life and death" and that it is critical that COP29 delivers the funding for this adaptation, as part of the overall finance goal. He said: "We can no longer rely on small streams of finance. We need torrents of funding. The funding exists. We need to unlock and unblock it".
There was lot of frustration at COP29 on Monday, with progress on a climate finance agreement seemingly very slow. Experts have said a total of $1 trillion (£790 billion) needs to be flowing into developing countries each year by 2030, bar China, to meet the Paris Agreement goal of keeping global heating below 2C. But the first week of negotiations achieved limited progress and hit walls in talks on adaptation, cutting emissions, and keeping previous commitments on track.
Countries were still far apart on how much is needed for developing countries to transition away from fossil fuels, adapt to climate change and pay for damages caused by extreme weather. Whilst experts said $1 trillion, developing nations have said $1.3 trillion. Rich nations were yet to name the figure they thought was appropriate. Meanwhile, the UK and US signed a new agreement for civil nuclear collaboration on the sidelines of COP negotiations. The agreement aims to pool billions in research funds to speed up the development of new technologies such as advanced modular reactors.
Tuesday 19 November
As day eight of COP29 started in Baku negotiators said they had run into the "valley of death" that can hit UN climate talks at about this point. This is due to the bleakness of the subject, and the length of time spent deliberating, but agreements can still be made. Negotiations between climate and environment ministers on how to design a new model for climate finance for developing countries that can meaningfully and fairly deliver at least $1 trillion a year, continues.
Nevertheless leading economists commented that raising money to tackle the climate crisis is achievable without disruption to the global economy, and would help to generate greener economic growth for the future. Amar Bhattacharya, Executive Secretary of the UN's independent high-level expert group (IHLEG) on climate finance, said: "Is it feasible? The answer is absolutely yes. Is it politically challenging? The answer is also yes. But I do believe it can be done".
On Tuesday the G20 communique contained key lines on the climate that confirmed the world would transition away from fossil fuels. The G20 said: "We welcome and fully subscribe to the ambitious and balanced outcome of the UN Climate Change Conference in Dubai (COP28), in particular the UAE Consensus and its first Global Stocktake of the Paris Agreement (GST-1)".
"We will respond positively to the GST-1 encouragement for Parties to the Paris Agreement to come forward in their next nationally determined contributions with ambitious, economy-wide emission reduction targets, covering all greenhouse gases, sectors and categories and aligned with limiting global warming to 1.5 C, as informed by the latest science, in the light of different national circumstances".
It was also announced that the UK, New Zealand and Colombia have joined the International Coalition on Phasing Out Fossil Fuel Incentives Including Subsidies (COFFIS). COFFIS is a Dutch-led coalition of governments working together to remove barriers and facilitate transparency towards the phase-out of fossil fuel subsidies. The members have now committed to coming to COP30 with a national plan for phasing out inefficient fossil fuel subsidies.
The COP29 presidency announced a new drive to cut methane emissions from waste dumps, stating that slashing emissions of the potent but short-lived greenhouse gas methane is "our emergency brake". Cutting methane from waste, fossil fuel sites, and farming will rapidly stop global temperature rise and is essential to taming the climate crisis. COP29 lead negotiator Yalchin Rafiyev said: "Today, we are launching the Cop29 Reducing Methane from Organic Waste Declaration".
"This commits countries to creating targets on food waste within future [national climate pledges]". More than 30 countries representing almost 50% of the global methane emissions from organic waste have endorsed the declaration, including eight of the world's ten largest emitters of methane from organic waste. Endorsing countries include the US, UK, Nigeria, Brazil, Japan, Russia and Mexico.
Wednesday 20 November
On day nine of COP29 the swarms of delegates had started to thin, but negotiators continued to work late into the night as the summit hit its final days. One delegation not in the room for the end of COP is Argentina, who withdrew their representatives after three days. After speculation that they were contemplating leaving the Paris agreement the country's Foreign Minsiter Geraldo Werthein has said they are staying, they were simply re-evaluating its position given that they disagreed with parts of the Paris agreement.
An alliance of countries aiming to transform global food systems reconvened on Wednesday, a year after its launch at COP28, to highlight progress since Dubai and to urge governments and financial institutions in Baku to prioritise climate finance for food systems. Co-chairs of the Alliance of Champions for Food Systems Transformation, Brazil, Norway and Sierra Leone, alongside founding members Cambodia and Rwanda, released an ACF Ministerial Statement, as well as a series of progress snapshots, highlighting key successes in each country and setting out priorities for further work.
Alliance called on other governments to join them, and in response to the following statement Tanzania has officially announced its intention to join the ACF and is set to be the newest member of the coalition: "Today, we are also calling for governments who share our ambition to create a fairer, healthier and more prosperous future to join us. The actions that each of us take within our borders can enhance our peoples’ food and nutritional security, boost equity and livelihoods, increase climate resilience, protect and restore nature, and help mitigate climate breakdown".
As of Wednesday at midday no country had so far put any money on the table in regards to developing countries needing at least $1 trillion a year, and there had been little agreement on how that should be achieved and how it can be broken down. COP29 was described as stuck as delegations were waiting for new text on the climate finance settlement, known as the NCQG (New Collective Quantified Goal), which was expected early hours of the Thursday morning.
Thursday 21 November
Negotiators started Thursday morning mulling over new draft texts which were released early, in the hope to answer the key question: how much should rich countries pay for developing countries to cope with the climate crisis and decarbonise the economies? As no one can seem to agree on a solution the draft text figure was an "[X]" to be decided later. David Waskow, a Director at the nonprofit environmental group World Resources Institute, said: "If parties really do work hard in the next 48 to 72 hours, I think it’s absolutely plausible that we’ll see an outcome here, and parties know that they need to deliver that".
But the [X] did not go down well with many in Baku, with Oscar Soria, the Director of the Common Initiative thinktank, said "The NCQG’s negotiating placeholder ‘X’ for climate finance is a testament of the ineptitude from rich nations and emerging economies that are failing to find a workable solution for everyone. This is a dangerous ambiguity: inaction risks turning ‘X’ into the symbol of extinction for the world’s most vulnerable. Without firm, ambitious commitments, this vagueness betrays the Paris Agreement’s promise and leaves developing nations unarmed in their fight against climate chaos".
Thursday confirmed there will be no cover text at COP29, which may seem extraordinary for some, as the cover text has been a key document in several recent COPs. They are a key vehicle for countries to make commitments that build on the underlying agreements, and can themselves be built upon in future years. The reason a lack of cover text is important at COP29, is because there has been a row over a key resolution reached last year, which committed countries to "transition away from fossil fuels". If there is to be no cover text, the presidency will have to ensure that COP29 has some means of affirming the "transition away from fossil fuels".
The COP29 presidency has issued a statement defending the draft text which states: "The next iteration - to be released tonight - will be shorter and will contain numbers based on our view of possible landing zones for consensus". UN Secretary-General António Guterres commented: "COP29 is now down to the wire [but] failure is not an option. It might jeopardise both near-term action, and ambition in new national climate action plans, with potential devastating impacts as irreversible tipping points are getting closer. A surge in finance is essential".
"Amidst geopolitical divisions and uncertainties, the world needs countries to come together. So, I appeal directly to ministers and negotiators: soften hard lines. Navigate a path through your differences. And keep your eyes on the bigger picture. Never forget what is at stake - to help move us closer to securing a decent world for all humanity".
"This is not a zero-sum game. Finance is not a hand-out. It’s an investment against the devastation that unchecked climate chaos will inflict on us all. It’s a down-payment on a safer, more prosperous future for every nation on Earth". After the criticisms of the draft texts, Azerbaijan called governments into a special gathering to try thrash out differences before producing a new draft. This lasted the afternoon and was called a Qurultay, which is the name given to a traditional gathering of Turkic tribal chieftains in which high-level collective decisions are taken under the leadership of the host.
Another issue which continued on Thursday was Saudi Arabia's persistent obstruction of action to cut the burning of fossil fuels, with China also opposed to an explicit mention of the fossil fuel pledge. This goes against the pledge to "transition away from fossil fuels" made at last year's COP28 which many countries want to do to maintain political momentum.
Friday 22 November
Ministers and negotiators met until the early hours of the final Friday morning of COP29 to try find common ground on the issues where they have been at loggerheads, including:
The UK government pledged £239 million to tackle deforestation in countries such as Colombia and Indonesia, in recognition of "the critical role of forests in those countries as 'carbon sinks' that absorb more CO2 from the atmosphere annually than the UK and USA emit combined". According to the Department for Energy, Security and Net Zero, the funding comprises:
The phrase "transition away from fossil fuels" was further debated by the countries, which Saudi Arabia and allies fought to keep out to try sideline the commitment from COP28. In one of Friday's negotiating texts, it was mentioned again: "Underscores the multisectoral and multidimensional nature of just transitions and the resultant need for whole-of-economy approaches to just transitions that engage the private sector, including micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, and contribute to the creation of green, decent jobs and recognizes that such approaches include significant socioeconomic opportunities associated with transitioning away from fossil fuels in energy systems".
The UEA said all countries should "honour what they agreed" at COP28.
Late Friday morning a new draft text on new collective quantified goal on climate finance was published, which:
John Verdieck, Director of International Climate Policy at The Nature Conservancy, is concerned about whether the text is clear enough about developed countries’ role as the providers of climate finance: "It’s been a hard-fought week, but this proposed number of at least $1.3tn, with a public floor of $250bn, for climate finance to developing countries shows that negotiators are taking this crisis seriously. Unfortunately, saying that “all actors” have to take responsibility is too ambiguous and could allow wealthy nations to skirt their responsibilities".
Reactions to COP29
Mohamed Adow, Director of the climate and energy thinktank Power Shift Africa, has criticised the poorly led COP and blames Azerbaijan for the chaos: "This COP presidency is one of the worst in recent memory and he is overseeing one of the most poorly led and chaotic COP meetings ever".
"COP summits are a delicate and precious thing, they require skill and determination in order to progress global climate action and land a successful deal".
On the new draft climate finance text, the Australian Climate Change Minister, Chris Bowen, described it as "genuine attempt". However civil society groups have criticised the text. War on Want tweeted: "This is nowhere near the public, grant-based climate finance the planet and people urgently need".
Laurie van der Burg, Global Public Finance Manager at Oil Change International, said: "This text is an absolute embarrassment. It’s the equivalent of governments handing the keys to the firetruck to the arsonists. The vague $1.3 trillion investment target is not to be relied on and the $250 billion goal is not debt-free. Previous suggestions to end fossil fuel handouts and make polluters pay have all been axed. This amounts to a cop-out for polluters and allows rich countries to dodge their responsibilities by relying on the private sector and even developing countries to cover the bill, creating a debt-trap for countries most vulnerable to the climate crisis".
"We know rich countries can pay up the trillions they owe to the Global South by ending fossil fuel handouts, taxing the super rich, and changing unfair global financial rules. We need a dramatic change in direction if we want a fighting chance to leave Baku with a finance deal that can support the fair fossil fuel phaseout that we need to avoid breaching 1.5°C".
Hope is not all lost, as the Environmental Investigation Agency states: "As we look towards COP30 in Belém, strong leadership from Brazil will be critical to speed up progress".
