New Collective Quantified Goal 

Source: This post on New Collective Quantified Goal has been created based on the article “All eyes on Baku and the climate finance goal”, published in The Hindu on 8th Nov 2024. 

Syllabus Topic: GS Paper 3 Environment Conservation 

News: The upcoming COP 29 will focus on developing a framework for the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) and future climate finance. It also focuses on the problems with the 100-billion-dollar climate finance goals. 

What is the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG)? 

COP29, scheduled to take place in Baku, Azerbaijan, from November 11 to 22, 2024. One of the vital components of COP 29 is the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG). As outlined in Article 9 of the Paris Agreement, the climate finance needs and priorities of developing countries are central to the NCQG.  

What are the ongoing Disagreements in Climate Finance? 

The key contentions in Climate Finance include the NCQG’s structure, financial scope, time frames, and sources of funding.  

Arguments of Developing Countries
a. Developing nations argue that climate finance responsibilities should not unfairly fall on them.
b. They emphasize equity, calling for measurable targets and a balance between adaptation and mitigation efforts.
c. They support public finance, grants, concessional loans, and specific timelines of five to ten years. 

Arguments of Developed Countries
a. Developed countries are pushing to widen the NCQG contributor base, with a preference for outcome-driven, flexible funding structures aimed at achieving low emissions and climate resilience.
b. Developed countries also advocate for innovative and multilayered financing mechanisms. 

What are the Persistent Issues from the earlier $100 Billion Pledge? 

The unmet $100 billion annual climate finance commitment, initially promised in 2009 and delayed until 2022, has bred distrust between developed and developing nations.  

1. OECD has reported a shortfall in the mobilization of finance required for climate adaptation. While the developed countries mobilized $115.9 billion in 2022, the target of climate finance remains inadequate.
2. There is heavy reliance on loans over grants. This has compounded the debt burden for vulnerable countries. 
3. Adaptation efforts like infrastructure resilience and disaster management suffer due to limited private sector investment.
4. Access to funds from entities like the Green Climate Fund remains challenging. This has created barriers to effective adaptation.

What are the Equity Concerns behind Expanding the Contributor Base? 

Developed countries, notably Switzerland and Canada, are advocating to expand the NCQG contributor base by proposing criteria such as emissions levels and gross national income per capita. Their proposals implicitly target countries like China and oil-rich states such as Bahrain, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia.  

However, developing countries view this as a deviation from the core climate finance principles of equity and common but differentiated responsibilities. This debate could delay critical climate finance discussions at COP29, potentially impeding progress on urgent climate actions. 

What Should be the Way Forward? 

Developing countries must be provided finance, as well as technology transfer and capacity building to address mitigation and adaptation needs.  

Common accounting frameworks and reducing reliance on private investment are essential to ensure transparency and accountability of NCQG. 

The NCQG and overall climate finance must be firmly rooted in Article 9 of the Paris Agreement.