Geneva, 28 November 2024
Dear Madam Speaker,
Dear Mr. Speaker,
The IPU, together with the Milli Majlis of the Republic of Azerbaijan, organized the Parliamentary Meeting
on the occasion of the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP29) in Baku, Azerbaijan, on
16–17 November 2024. The meeting brought together over 300 parliamentarians from 60 countries in
the COP29 Green Zone to discuss critical issues and chart a parliamentary response to the climate
crisis.
Over the course of two days, parliamentarians engaged in discussions on key topics, including
enhancing Nationally Determined Contributions, scaling-up climate finance and strengthening resilience
and adaptation efforts. The agenda also covered critical issues such as the role of technology in
advancing climate solutions, safeguarding health and food security in the face of climate impacts, and
addressing the growing challenge of climate-induced migration and displacement.
The meeting concluded with the adoption of an
outcome document
outlining a roadmap for parliamentary
action post-COP29, urging parliaments to advance climate goals through stronger legislation, financing,
renewable energy transition, adaptation, and support for vulnerable groups, while fostering international
cooperation, transparency, and cross-sector collaboration ahead of COP30.
Parliaments play a key role in tackling climate change. They can help implement the New Collective
Quantified Goal on climate finance agreed during COP29, which aims to provide $300 billion annually by
2035 for mitigation, adaptation and renewable energy, especially in developing countries. Parliaments
can align their national budgets with this goal, ensure funds are used transparently and promote
innovative financing. They can also strengthen accountability for climate finance commitments by
advocating for domestic fulfilment and applying international pressure to ensure financial needs are met.
In addition to climate finance, a key area of focus at COP29 was the Nationally Determined Contributions
that every party to the Paris Agreement must submit to the UNFCCC early in 2025. NDCs are at the core
of climate action, serving as each country’s roadmap for reducing emissions and adapting to climate
impacts. Parliaments will have a crucial role in overseeing these contributions, and with this in mind I
would like to draw your attention to two resources for parliaments on NDCs. I encourage you to share
these resources within your Parliament, including with committees working on climate and environment-
related issues, as they can inspire a more ambitious and targeted response to the new NDCs.
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10 actions for stronger national climate commitments
offers a practical framework for overseeing
and enhancing NDCs, focusing on broad strategies to strengthen parliamentary engagement in
climate action.
The
Parliamentary oversight of national climate commitments
toolkit builds on the 10 actions by
providing targeted guidance on key components of NDCs – mitigation, adaptation, and finance –
based on the findings of the global stocktake and the ongoing NDC submission cycle.
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