Baku’s Strategy on Climate Finance
A constellation of sector-specific initiatives “parallel” to the main negotiation tracks is the strategy being followed by the Azerbaijani presidency of the COP29 Climate Summit to catalyze attention and commitment from states, particularly on divisive issues like climate finance, as well as other key objectives for the summit’s success.
The approach taken by Mukhtar Babayev, the designated president of the summit, is not new. All host countries of UN climate meetings leverage side events to bolster the summit’s outcomes. Azerbaijan is doing this systematically and substantially. Some of the initiatives announced on September 16 in Baku, as part of the presidency’s “Action Agenda,” aim to bring to the table issues that have so far been left out of official negotiations or are considered “radioactive.”
Regarding climate finance, Baku is pushing the role of fossil fuel companies and oil and gas-producing countries by presenting the Climate Finance Action Fund (CFAF). This fund, capitalized through voluntary contributions from countries and fossil fuel companies, is designed to catalyze public and private resources for mitigation, adaptation, and research and development.
Among the CFAF’s provisions are special structures for highly subsidized and grant-based financing to rapidly address the impacts of natural disasters in developing countries in need. These are precisely the requests made by developing countries for reaching an agreement at the COP29 Climate Summit.
Other Initiatives Surrounding the COP29 Climate Summit
In addition to the primary negotiations, the COP29 presidency is proposing the following initiatives or global commitments:
- The Baku Initiative for Climate Finance, Investment, and Trade (BICFIT): Focused on the intersection of finance, investments, and trade for climate action.
- Commitment to Green Energy Zones and Corridors: Advancing green energy infrastructure.
- Global Commitment to Energy Storage and Networks: Aiming to increase global energy storage capacity sixfold from 2022 levels to 1,500 GW by 2030.
- COP29 Hydrogen Declaration: A declaration on hydrogen as a climate solution.
- Call for a COP Truce: Inspired by the “Olympic Truce,” this call seeks temporary cessation of conflicts to focus on climate issues.
- COP29 Green Digital Action Declaration: A commitment to advancing green digital technologies.
- The Baku Initiative on Human Development for Climate Resilience: Focused on human development to enhance climate resilience.
- The Baku Harmoniya Climate Initiative for Farmers: Supporting climate resilience in agriculture.
- COP29 Declaration on Reducing Methane from Organic Waste: Addressing methane emissions from waste.
- COP29 Multisectoral Actions Pathways (MAP) for Resilient and Healthy Cities: Strategies for building resilient and healthy urban environments.
- COP29 Declaration on Enhanced Actions in Tourism: Promoting sustainable tourism practices.
- COP29 Declaration on Water for Climate Action: Focusing on water management in climate strategies.
- The Baku Global Climate Transparency Platform (BTP): A platform for global climate transparency and accountability.