COP29: From ambition to action
This coming Monday will see the start of COP29 – formally the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), in Baku, Azerbaijan. The edition is nicknamed “the finance COP” and is important on more than one account, not least as Trump’s victory likely leads to a change of course for the US on climate commitment.
The volume and structure of the finance mobilised to support developing countries to transition to low-emission and climate-resilient economies tops the agenda.
The New Collective Quantified Goal on Climate Finance (NCQG) – which should supersede the USD 100 billion per year target in place since 2020 – will set the tone for future ambition and collaboration. Beyond the amount of finance that Parties can collectively commit to, discussions must also provide clarity on how domestic and international public finance can best be invested, ensuring its additionality and efficiency.
The outcome of the NCQG negotiations will structure many of the discussions to come, including around the reform of the global financial architecture, and the role of Public Development Banks (PDBs) in the renewed system. 2025 is expected to be a pivotal year for climate and development finance, with third generation NDCs to be submitted to the UNFCCC by February, the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development (FFD4) taking place in July, and culminating with COP 30, in November, in Brazil. The success of COP29 will be measured by the genuine commitment to more and better financing for the transition, essentially underpinning the next steps in 2025.
I4CE is supporting the translation of the current and future country commitments into concrete actions. First, at country level, we help turn climate commitments into financing plans and we support the creation of robust accountability frameworks for sustainable finance. Next, to enhance the role of PDBs, we support ongoing discussions on Paris alignment approaches and the impact of financial intermediation. And finally, linked to the NCQG debate, we are engaged in the development of a better characterisation of finance flows that contribute to the transition, with Mainstreaming Climate in Financial Institutions.
Find more information about these initiatives below and at our events at COP.