COP29's Impact On Global Efforts To Be Extensively Discussed For Long Time - Official

(MENAFN- Trend News Agency) BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 25. Azerbaijan's contribution to the global fight against climate change through the successful hosting of COP29 will be discussed for years to come, said Sahiba Gafarova, Speaker of the Azerbaijani Parliament, Trend reports.

Speaking at today's plenary session of the parliament, Gafarova emphasized that the high-level organization of the prestigious COP29 conference not only reinforced Azerbaijan's image as a leader in addressing both regional and global climate issues but also increased the country's ambitions for hosting further important international events.

As part of COP29, on November 16 and 17, a Parliamentary Meeting was held jointly organized by the Inter-Parliamentary Union and the Parliament of Azerbaijan. The event was attended by 95 delegations from 67 countries, representing national parliaments, inter-parliamentary organizations, and various institutions, for a total of 345 parliamentary representatives.

Opening the meeting, I particularly highlighted one point. I noted that Azerbaijan, long before being chosen as the host country for COP29, had placed climate-related activities and the 'green' agenda at the center of its national plans under the leadership of President Ilham Aliyev.

By taking voluntary commitments, implementing renewable energy projects, and creating green energy zones, our country has demonstrated persistence and determination on the path of further development.

I also emphasized that parliamentary cooperation is of special importance for the exchange of knowledge, experience, and best practices. We must continue to improve our legislation and encourage governments to more effectively mobilize their efforts.

During the event, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the Parliament of Azerbaijan and the International Parliament for Tolerance and Peace.

In the Azerbaijani parliament, 15 bilateral meetings were held with the heads of international parliamentary organizations and parliaments that arrived in Baku to participate in COP29 and the Parliamentary Meeting. During discussions with the heads of parliaments, the Secretary General of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, the Vice President of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, the President of the Mediterranean Parliamentary Assembly, the Secretary General of the Commonwealth of Nations, Baroness Scotland, the 76th Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Theresa May, the Prime Ministers of Albania, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Tonga, Zimbabwe, co-chairs and members of the Nizami Ganjavi International Center, and other high-ranking officials, opinions were exchanged on the successful organization of COP29 and the Parliamentary Meeting and the discussions held at these events," added Gafarova.

To note, the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29), which ran until November 22, opened at the Baku Olympic Stadium on November 11. It was the largest event organized by Azerbaijan to date and the first time in the region that it was held in Azerbaijan.

Within COP29, the highest level event - the summit of world leaders on climate action - was held on November 12–13.

The main expectation from COP29 was to agree on a fair and ambitious New Collective Quantitative Goal (NCQG) on climate finance. The COP29 chairmanship launched 14 initiatives that include linkages between climate action and the Sustainable Development Goals, including green energy corridors, green energy storage, harmony for climate resilience, clean hydrogen, methane reduction in organic waste, action on green digital technologies, and other topics.

The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change is an agreement signed at the Rio Earth Summit in June 1992 to prevent dangerous human interference in the climate system. The acronym COP (Conference of Parties) stands for“Conference of Parties” and is the highest legislative body overseeing the implementation of the Framework Convention on Climate Change.

A total of 198 countries are parties to the Convention. Unless otherwise decided by the parties, COP is held annually. The first COP event was held in March 1995 in Berlin, and its secretariat is located in Bonn.

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