BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 1. The replenishment of the Fund for Responding to Loss & Damage (FRLD) is set to be a key topic at COP29 in Baku, a representative of the COP29 Presidency team told Trend.
"Established in 2022 but not scheduled to start operations until 2025, the fund had amassed $800 million. Many nations have stepped up to help fund the climate vulnerability of nations that are especially at risk, especially island states that are more likely to experience the devastating effects of natural disasters.
During COP29, clarifications will be made on how this fund will be further replenished and how its resources will be distributed," noted the informed expert.
The expert reminded that on September 21 in Baku, during the third meeting of the board of this fund, organized by Azerbaijan's COP29 Presidency, a decision was made that the first funding of the FRLD will begin in 2025.
"Decisions to establish the fund were made at COP27, and the decision on the necessity of its operation was made at COP28. In Baku at COP29, questions regarding further replenishment of the fund and distribution of its resources, starting from 2025, will be clarified," the source added.
The fund's Executive Director Ibrahima Cheikh Diong, who was elected at the meeting of the Board of Directors of FRLD in September in Baku, will arrive at COP29 to discuss the climate financing agenda.
Diong will start his duties on November 1, 2024. The fund's headquarters is located in the Philippines.
Previously, COP29 President Mukhtar Babayev noted that the presidency of COP29 will continue to seek further contributions to the fund and work on the broader landscape of loss and damage issues.
As of the beginning of 2024, contributions to the FRLD have been made by France, Italy, the United Kingdom, Germany, the US, the UAE, and Japan.
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. 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.
Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel