With droughts, flooding disasters and record-breaking heat, recent natural catastrophes have shown that the global community must do all it can to keep the goals from the Paris Agreement within reach. This issue was discussed at the 29^th UN Climate Change Conference (COP29) which took place in Azerbaijan from 11 to 24 November 2024. Germany was represented by a number of federal ministers.

A new 2030 climate protection financing target was agreed at the COP29 Climate Change Conference. This represents an essential step towards improving financial support to help the most vulnerable states handle the consequences of climate change. In future, it will not only be the established industrial states which will need to contribute, but also states with the necessary economic strength but which have not been active donor nations in the past. In view of strained public budgets, planning provides for private climate investment that is encouraged by state investment to play a central role, too.

After the Climate Change Conference, Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz wrote on X:
"Not perfect, but something we can work with: the resolutions agreed in Baku will support climate protection in developing countries. We must step up our efforts together around the world. Germany’s contribution to global climate protection remains important.”

Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said after the conference in Baku:
“In geopolitically challenging times such as these, it should not be underestimated that we have strengthened the UN system by making a decision, not weakened it further.”

One of the key goals of the negotiations during COP 29 was to define a new climate protection financing target from 2025 onwards. At the 2023 Climate Change Conference in Dubai, the international community agreed for the first time to gradually transition away from the use of coal, oil and gas. In addition to international climate protection financing, the signatory states were called on to triple their renewable energy capacities by 2030 and to double their energy efficiency.

Increase in climate protection financing for poor countries by 2035

At the end of COP29, the 190 signatory states agreed to provide greater support for climate protection in developing countries by 2035: the funds earmarked for this purpose are to rise from currently 100 billion to 300 billion dollars per year.

Industrial nations will not be the only contributors. In future, contributions from multilateral development banks will also be included. Economically strong emerging countries such as the Gulf States and China will also be asked to contribute. This enlargement of the circle of donors constitutes a realignment.

It is clear that the agreement is a key milestone towards a successful implementation of the Paris Agreement and provides for support for developing countries in their climate protection efforts.

Germany is a pioneer of international climate protection financing. The Federal Government made 5.7 billion euros’ worth of public funds available in 2023, and continues to pursue its goal to increase funding for international climate protection from budgetary resources to at least 6 billion euros per year by 2025. State resources must be used even more efficiently in future to leverage private climate protection investment. 

With immediate effect, Germany, the United Kingdom, Canada and the Climate Investment Funds (CIF) will increase their support for the development of low-carbon production methods and green lead markets in developing and emerging countries. Around 1.3 billion US dollars' worth of climate protection resources are to be made available for this purpose. The German contribution to this is around 220 million dollars. 

The Federal Ministry for the Environment and the Federal Foreign Office also announced in Baku that they will be contributing a total of 60 million euros to the Adaptation Fund. This means that Germany is once more making a vital contribution to financing of the adaptation to climate change, and therefore the protection of global resilience and stability. The Adaptation Fund supports those countries which are at the greatest risk due to the climate crisis. Germany is the biggest donor for this central financing instrument.

Rules for free carbon markets  

A joint set of rules for carbon markets was also adopted in Baku. So-called Voluntary Carbon Markets allow emission reductions to be handled more effectively worldwide, for example through reforestation or reducing of intensive farming. This international cooperation is expected to considerably reduce the costs of implementing the national climate protection plans of the individual countries. This is also a big step forward with regard to financing.

Decarbonisation requires global cooperation

The Climate Club plays an important rule when it comes to realising decarbonisation of industry. At the start of the conference, Federal Chancellor Scholz stressed that the transition of industry had to take place on a global scale to be successful. Scholz added that cooperative solutions and an ambitious, transparent and inclusive joint framework were needed now.

The new Global Matchmaking Platform (GMP) set up by the Climate Club is also dedicated to cooperation in this area, as it gives emerging and developing countries access to support for reducing industrial greenhouse gas emissions.

The Climate Club is doing important preliminary work to allow for the decarbonisation of industry. “We have created the foundations for global standards for green steel and cement,” said Federal Minister for Economic Affairs Robert Habeck during the conference, adding that the international construction sector had also agreed on definitions for climate-neutral concrete. 

The Climate Club was established at the 2022 G7 Summit in Elmau under German Presidency. The club is chaired jointly by Germany and Chile, and 43 countries are by now members of this open and cooperative forum that aims to support a rapid and ambitious implementation of the Paris Agreement to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. 

Paving the way for climate-neutral energy around the world

Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Action Habeck stressed that it was possible to triple renewable energy capacities by 2030: “The global energy transition is meanwhile progressing rapidly and is increasingly becoming a self-supporting process. By now, investment in renewable energy far exceeds investment in fossil energy.”

After the end of the conference, Habeck added that the results were “insufficient, but something we can work with” and that the real-world market forces that had long since opted for renewable energy could not be stopped.