COP29 summit: Anger at ‘meagre’ figure for climate cash

Delegates from developing nations met with dismay a proposed climate deal pledging $250 billion from wealthy countries to poorer ones by 2035, the result of talks at the UN's COP29 climate summit in Baku, Azerbaijan.

The amount is more than double the previous goal of $100 billion a year set 15 years ago, but it's less than a quarter of the number requested by developing nations hit hardest by extreme weather.

"Our expectation was low, but this is a slap in the face," said Mohamed Adow, from Power Shift Africa. "This is not something any developing country will fall for."

Developing nations see conferences like COP29 as their greatest opportunity to pressure rich nations, since they are absent at meetings of the world's biggest economies.

From the start, COP29 has been about climate finance — money that wealthy nations are obligated to pay to developing countries to cover damages resulting from extreme weather, helping those nations adapt to a warming planet and wean themselves from fossil fuels.

Delegations from numerous countries, analysts and advocates were kept in the dark about the draft deal until it dropped more than a half a day later than promised, prompting disquiet about how the conference was being run.

"These texts form a balanced and streamlined package for COP29," the summit heads said in a statement. "The COP29 Presidency urges parties to study this text intently, to pave the way towards consensus, on the few options remaining."

Rich nations and analysts say this amount — often considered a "core" — will then be mobilized or leveraged for greater spending on helping poor nations deal with climate change. But much of that means loans for countries already grappling with high levels of debt.