On the first day of the COP29 climate summit, representatives worldwide marked a critical early success by reaching a landmark consensus on carbon credit standards under Article 6.4 of the Paris Agreement on carbon markets. This decision, seen as a pivotal move for the international carbon market, aims to enhance the demand for carbon credits and ensure market integrity through UN oversight.
COP29 President Mukhtar Babayev celebrated the achievement, describing it as a “game-changing tool” that can funnel significant resources into developing countries through carbon markets. He acknowledged the significance of overcoming years of gridlock, calling the breakthrough in Baku the “beginning” of a new era of climate cooperation. However, he warned that much remains to be done.
The focus on operationalizing Article 6 (Entails Carbon Markets)was a top priority for the COP29 Presidency, with expectations that streamlining international cooperation could cut the annual cost of implementing national climate targets by up to $250 billion.
Opening the conference, Babayev outlined urgent objectives for global leaders, who are gathering in record numbers — nearly 70,000 delegates and key figures, including heads of state. He emphasized the stark reality presented by the UNEP Emissions Gap Report, which forecasts a catastrophic 3°C temperature rise under current policies.
“We are on a road to ruin,” Babayev cautioned, pointing to the unseen suffering caused by climate inaction. He described COP29 as a crucial opportunity to “chart a new path forward.”
Babayev also pointed out the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) for climate finance as the top priority for COP29 negotiations. While noting progress on elements such as transparency, access, and timeframe, he acknowledged ongoing disputes over contribution sources and the target size.
“We know the needs are in the trillions,” Babayev said, underscoring that even hundreds of billions in public sector mobilization could offer a meaningful impact. “These investments pay off,” he asserted, contrasting the cost of inaction.
Echoing this urgency, UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell highlighted the essential nature of a new global climate finance goal. “If at least two-thirds of the world’s nations cannot afford to cut emissions quickly, then every nation pays a brutal price,” Stiell stated, dismissing the notion that climate finance is mere charity. “An ambitious new climate finance goal is in the self-interest of every nation, including the largest and wealthiest.”
Babayev also called on countries to submit new, ambitious Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) aligned with the 1.5°C target by next year, and to deliver the first Biennial Transparency Reports (BTR) in 2024. Highlighting the urgency of emissions reductions, he noted that COP29 must remain vocal on mitigation efforts.
“We have put mitigation on the agenda at all meetings ahead of COP so that we can find a way forward,” Babayev said, vowing to address the climate challenge from multiple angles while keeping NCQG as the top focus.
Babayev remarked the significance of COP29 as a “moment of truth” as the world approaches the end of the first decade under the Paris Agreement. Describing climate action as “the race of our lives,” he acknowledged the scale of the challenges ahead, but affirmed that the goals set by COP29 are non-negotiable.
