COP29 Chief Negotiator Talks On Azerbaijan's Financial Initiatives (Exclusive)

(MENAFN- Trend News Agency) BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 30. The share of extracting companies to join the Climate Finance Action Fund (CFAF), initiated by Azerbaijan ahead of COP29, is being clarified, Azerbaijani Deputy Foreign Minister and Chief Negotiator for COP29 Yalchin Rafiyev told Trend .

"We have started negotiations with fossil fuel producers in Azerbaijan and around the world regarding voluntary contributions to the CFAF. In particular, detailed negotiations are already underway with SOCAR (State Oil Company of Azerbaijan) and private companies operating in the oil, gas, and coal sectors. The shares of the companies have not yet been determined, and the situation will become clearer closer to the climate summit," noted Rafiyev.

According to him, discussions are ongoing about whether these will be one-time contributions from the companies or deductions from the companies' revenues.

On this issue, the COP29 Presidency is negotiating with Arab, European, and Asian companies, and according to Rafiyev, companies from 10 countries have already agreed to become sponsors of the CFAF.

This Azerbaijani initiative was presented on July 19 in Baku during the presentation of the COP29 Presidency's Action Plan.

The fund, with an initial budget of $1 billion, is being established to assist developing countries as well as for measures to implement national contributions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

"The fund plans to incentivize the private sector to reduce emissions and assist in research and development for mitigating the effects of climate change. This will be done, for example, through grant programs," emphasized Rafiyev.

The fund's operations will be structured in such a way that its investments will return to it in one form or another to finance new "green" projects or assist in addressing the consequences of natural disasters and other urgent measures.

Another financial initiative of Azerbaijan at COP29 will be the "Baku Initiative for Climate Finance, Investment, and Trade Dialogue" (BICFIT).

"It can act as a platform for long-term dialogue for the international community to interconnect finance, investment, and trade," said the chief negotiator for COP29.

Additionally, there are initiatives to invest in "human capital" and create a "Just Transition Investment Partnership for Skills Development" (to help implement all global initiatives to combat climate change).

This November, Azerbaijan will host COP29. This decision was made at the COP28 plenary meeting held in Dubai on December 11 last year. Baku will become the center of the world and will receive about 70–80,000 foreign guests.

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is an agreement signed at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992 to prevent dangerous human interference with the climate system. The COP-the Conference of the Parties-is the highest legislative body overseeing the implementation of the Framework Convention on Climate Change. There are 198 countries that are parties to the Convention. Unless the parties agree otherwise, the COP is held annually. The first COP event took place in March 1995 in Germany's Berlin, with its secretariat in Bonn.

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