What did COP29 achieve?
From 11–22 November, the Azerbaijani capital Baku played host to the UN’s 29th Climate Change Conference, COP29. Participants from 195 countries converged on the ancient city on the Caspian Sea to engage in climate change negotiations. After days of discussion, an agreement has been reached, but what are the main outcomes and how did the EU team push for more international climate action?
The COP of finance
COP29 was billed to be the most important for climate finance since 2009 when developed countries agreed to a goal of mobilising USD 100 billion per year in contributions from 2020–25.
The EU and its Member States pay their fair share towards this goal, and are the world’s biggest donor of climate finance. In 2023, they mobilised €28.6 billion in climate finance from public sources and an additional amount of €7.2 billion of private finance.
At the top of the agenda was the new collective quantified goal, or NCQG — an updated climate finance goal to accelerate climate action that reflects the growing financial needs of developing countries and the scale of action required to limit global warming to 1.5°C.
Countries agreed to triple the current level of public-sector finance contributions to USD 300 billion per year by 2035, and to broaden the global contributor base for climate finance. This means more countries will provide funds to reflect their growing emissions and economic weight.
The agreement also gives a strengthened role to multilateral development banks (MDBs), maximising the leverage and impact of public funds by drawing in and mobilising significant private finance. Parties agreed that the combined funding from all these sources should reach at least USD 1.3 trillion per year by 2035.
Carbon market rules
While finance stole the headlines, there were other areas where important progress was made. In Baku, Parties finalised the rules that will bring greater environmental integrity, transparency and accountability to international carbon markets under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. The idea is for countries to be able to transfer carbon credits earned from the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions to help others meet their climate targets.
The agreement will set a new UN-backed standard for high-quality carbon offsets, and the new rules for recording and tracking of international transfers will bring transparency to bilateral carbon deals between Parties. This will enable a cost-effective reduction and removal of emissions.
EU pledges and key events
Aside from the formal decisions that came out of the negotiations, the EU also launched a number of initiatives over the two weeks. Here are some of the highlights:
- During COP29 the EU joined a group of other ambitious countries in announcing its intention to present a 1.5°C-aligned Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) next year, setting the bar for other countries. NDCs are the climate action plans countries submit to the United Nations.
- To drive forward the clean energy transition, the Commission and the Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance announced a partnership on the transition away from fossil fuels.
- The EU demonstrated its commitment to placing gender equality at the heart of international climate talks by spearheading a joint statement on the issue, which gained the support of 17 other countries from around the world. The momentum it built helped secure the continuation of international work on integrating gender considerations across all aspects of climate action.
- The Commission also launched a new Methane Abatement Partnership Roadmap to accelerate the reduction of methane emissions associated with fossil energy production and consumption, in collaboration with a number of partner countries, international organisations, NGOs and development banks.
- During the COP, the EU released its first-ever Biennial Transparency Report (BTR), well ahead of the year-end deadline. These reports are a key step in putting the Paris Agreement into action, helping to boost accountability and teamwork in tackling climate change worldwide.
How is the EU doing on climate action?
The latest data shows the EU is on track to achieve its legally binding commitments to reach climate neutrality (net-zero emissions) by 2050 and will exceed the 2030 target of cutting net greenhouse gas emissions by at least -55%, if all legislation is implemented as agreed.
Data for 2023 shows the EU cut its emissions by over 8% in just one year, bringing its net emissions down by 37% compared to 1990 levels.
But with the EU responsible for only 6% of global emissions, and falling, it’s paramount for others to act too. The EU is urging all major emitters to follow through on their promises, go further, and deliver the highest possible level of ambition to keep the goal of limiting temperature rise to 1.5°C alive.
All Parties to the Paris Agreement will meet again for COP30 in Belem, Brazil next year. This will be the occasion to review countries new NDCs and continue making progress to fight the climate crisis.
