COP29 agrees on ’$300billion per year by 2035’ for Global South to fight climate change; India calls it ‘paltry sum…’

COP29: The world reached a new climate deal at the COP29 on Saturday, with wealthy countries committing to provide $300 billion annually by 2035 to assist poorer nations in addressing the growing impacts of the climate crisis. However, India's representative said the amount was a ‘paltry sum,’ stated reports.

Immediately after the gavel came down, India’s representative, Chandni Raina, condemned the $300 billion pledge as a "paltry sum." She described the agreement as "nothing more than an optical illusion" and argued that it failed to "address the enormity of the challenge we all face," reported CNN.

The agreement at COP29 was reached after over two weeks of intense arguments and negotiations, coupled by boycotts and political disputes. At times, there were concerns the talks would collapse, especially when representatives of vulnerable small island states and the least-developed countries walked out of the negotiations on Saturday.

Why is $300 billion a 'paltry sum' ?

COP29 focused heavily on finance. However, the $300 billion that has been pledged, falls far short of the $1.3 trillion that economists say is necessary to help developing countries cope with the climate crisis.

Rich countries, which are primarily responsible for historical climate change, committed in 2009 to providing $100 billion annually by 2020 to developing countries. This pledge, already seen as grossly inadequate, was only fulfilled in 2022, two years after the deadline.

(more to come…)