ROSEAU, Dominica, CMC—Dominica is urging small island developing states (SIDS) to continue pushing for increased funding for climate change following the United Nations Conference of the Parties (COP 29) agreement for US$300 billion annually up to 2O35.
The United Nations Climate Change Executive Secretary, Simon Stiell, a former Grenada government minister, has described the new finance goal negotiated at COP 29, which ended in Azerbaijan last weekend, as “an insurance policy for humanity.”
However, developing countries, including those in the Caribbean, had sought over one trillion dollars in assistance. They called the agreement an “insult” and argued it did not give them the vital resources they required to truly address the complexities of the climate crisis.
Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Dr Vince Henderson said that while the rich developed countries made increased commitments, “there remain debates around that.
“We in small island developing states recognize that about US$1.5 trillion is required to deal with the impact of climate change. We are talking about loss and damage, the impact we have had to bear, even in Dominica, right here at home, and the effect of successive tropical storms, hurricanes, and other climate-related events.
“This amount, while some small island states like Dominica are welcoming it, we have concerns because out of that financing, the package is a requirement for countries to take loans, and we have made it clear we are in a position to make it difficult to contract more loans, especially because of the loans we have already contracted to deal with the issues of climate change.”
Henderson described the outcome of the COP29 meeting as “mixed,” saying, “Some people call it a weird outcome, some people say it does not reflect the spirits of the United Nations Convention on Climate Change in the way the matters are conducted.
“Some countries had some concerns raised with the decision, so there is a lot of debate around it, but we have to continue making our case,” Henderson said.
After two weeks of intense negotiations, delegates at COP 29 agreed to provide this funding annually, with an overall climate financing target of “at least US$1.3 trillion by 2035.”
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