BRAZIL — The stage is set for a major confrontation over climate finance at the upcoming 30th Conference of Parties (COP30), to be held in Belém, Brazil. Developing countries, led by India, are poised to demand that wealthy nations honor their financial obligations under the Paris Agreement, a contentious issue that dominated and ultimately stalled negotiations at last year’s COP29 summit in Baku.
The previous summit, dubbed the “finance COP,” ended in disappointment for many. The agreed-upon target to mobilize a minimum of $300 billion annually by 2035 fell far short of the $1.3 trillion developing nations had requested. Even more concerning, the final text from COP29 diluted the legal obligations of developed countries to provide public finance as stipulated by Article 9.1 of the Paris Agreement.
The Public vs. Private Finance Faultline
Experts and officials from developing countries argue that the current approach, which relies on a mix of public and private funds, allows developed nations to sidestep their responsibilities. Avantika Goswami of the Centre for Science and Environment explained that private finance is not as accountable or transparent as public finance, and cannot replace the legal commitment of governments.
An official from India’s Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change echoed this sentiment, stating that the Baku agreement “does not take care of the responsibility of developed countries as mentioned in Article 9.1” and is “insufficient.” This article mandates that developed countries “shall provide financial resources” to assist developing nations with mitigation and adaptation efforts, preferably through grants rather than loans.
India Leads the Charge to Enforce Article 9.1
India has actively pushed to bring Article 9.1 back to the center of the discussion, emphasizing that this core principle has been overlooked in recent years. The government official noted that without these financial commitments, developed countries “face no real obligation to provide public climate finance.” India, with the support of other developing nations like China, is pressing for a serious discussion on this matter at COP30.
Brazil, as the COP30 president, has signaled its intention to tackle climate finance by calling for a reform of multilateral development banks (MDBs). Brazilian Ambassador to India, Kenneth da Nóbrega, stated that MDBs need to work together to create innovative financial tools and that developed countries have a “historical responsibility” to fulfill their commitments, especially given their failure to meet previous pledges.