Several delegates stressed the significance of having reached an agreement and making progress in "difficult geopolitical times".
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00:00Like many before it, the 29th edition of the United Nations Conference on Climate Change
00:06needed extra time for an overall agreement to be reached.
00:10In the early hours of Sunday, exhausted delegates in Baku finally found a compromise on the
00:15most crucial issue of COP29, a new climate financing regime.
00:20The UN Climate Change Executive Secretary called it an insurance policy for humanity.
00:27Like any insurance policy, it only works if premiums are paid in full and on time.
00:36Promises must be kept to protect billions of lives.
00:43The sum agreed on to be guaranteed by the developed nations is at $300 billion annually
00:48much lower than developing nations had been asking for, with many delegates making their
00:53frustrations clear.
00:55However, as others pointed out, the compromise was accepted regardless, as there is now an
01:00expectation that this sum will serve as the foundation to reaching the goal experts say
01:05is needed, $1.3 trillion annually.
01:08It was very important for the African group to have that number, $300 billion by 2035,
01:16as a floor and not a ceiling.
01:18And we've been able, very late in the negotiation, to have the term at least to ensure that this
01:25can only be a starting base, a minimum, due to the vast needs of developing countries.
01:35Voluntary contributions by rich nations not included in the group of developed nations
01:40in the convention, like China and South Korea, are supposed to help reach that ceiling, as
01:45well as multilateral development banks, investments by the private sector and revenue from taxes
01:50in the carbon markets.
01:52As did most delegates, the European Commissioner for Climate Action stressed that an agreement
01:57being reached in difficult geopolitical times was particularly significant.
02:01But he also pointed to an issue close to the EU's heart, where at least some progress also
02:06had been made.
02:08Ladies and gentlemen, another topic that was on our minds this week is reducing emissions.
02:14It was not the focus of this COP, but we wanted more, because the world needs more of it.
02:22And even though the UAE consensus was attacked, we did move forward, even though it was just
02:29a bit.
02:31We did manage to safeguard Dubai and take some steps forward.
02:34It is less than what we have liked, but it is better than we feared.
02:41Next year's UN Climate Conference will be hosted by the Brazilian city of Belém, where,
02:46among other issues, mitigation in general and the Amazon rainforest in particular will
02:52take centre stage.