“Not very optimistic” – Jagdeo on major outcomes at COP29

Though Guyana will continue to participate and add its voice to global discussions on climate change mitigation and adaptation, the country’s Vice President is not very optimistic of any major developments coming out of this year’s United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29).
Dr Bharrat Jagdeo, speaking in his capacity as General Secretary of the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) from its Freedom House Headquarters on Wednesday, declared “I simply believe that not enough will be done.”
“I am not very optimistic that there will be a major outcome,” Jagdeo, a Champion of the Earth awardee in 2010, also expressed.
COP29 will be held in Baku, Azerbaijan on November 11-22.
Azerbaijan has proposed a US$1 billion Climate Finance Action Fund (CFAF) to invest in climate action in the developing world.
It is envisioned that the Fund will take financial contributions from fossil-fuel-producing countries and companies and use the money to invest in projects in the developing world that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and help build resilience to the impacts of extreme weather.
“Even if they succeed in putting together a US$1 billion fund for tropical countries and you exclude Guyana from the fund, we only have one per cent of tropical forests and we sold 30 per cent of our credits for US$750 million, at a minimum,” Jagdeo explained.
“So our one per cent can potentially yield upwards of US$2.5 maybe US$3 billion, and they’re struggling now to put together $1 billion for 99% of the remaining tropical forests,” he further reasoned.
According to the vice president, this situation demonstrates the lack of global incentive and support in preserving “this vital asset in the fight against climate change.”
On the other hand, he boasted that it talks about Guyana’s success story.
Carbon credits
In December 2022, the Guyana Government signed a historic US$750 million carbon credits deal with Hess Corporation.
The company had agreed to buy 2.5 million credits per year for the period 2016-2032.
The deal came on the heels of Guyana being the first country to receive a certification of more than 33 million carbon credits by the Architecture for REDD+ Transactions (ART) on December 1, 2022.
However, while the deal is for 10 years, that is, 2022 to 2032, the Government was able to negotiate, as part of the sale agreement, for the oil major to also purchase some 12.5 million carbon credits from the period 2016 to 2020 – referred to as “legacy credit”.
The country’s more than 18 million hectares of forests are estimated to store approximately 20 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent. The remaining 70 per cent of Guyana’s carbon credit will be put on the market for future sale agreements.
Guyana has already been utilising revenues from the deal to fund a number of projects countrywide. In fact, indigenous villages across the country were each given a percentage of the country’s earnings to finance community-based and approved projects.
In 2023, US$150 million was received from Hess Corporation and 15 per cent of this was allocated to 242 indigenous villages, representing a total of US$22.5 million.
For 2024, the percentage allotment has been increased to 26.5 per cent, since Guyana is set to earn US$87.5 million this year.
Already, the money is funding over 800 transformative projects countrywide.
Against this backdrop, Jagdeo explained that if COP29 succeeds in putting together the $1 billion fund, there’s no guarantee the funds will flow immediately.
He also hinted at the possibility that the mechanism for accessing the fund might be too bureaucratic.
Impact of US elections
Meanwhile, the Vice President also pointed to the impact the US elections will have on the outcomes of COP29.
He explained that with the US elections so close by, “I’m not sure that the US will have clear or meaningful positions to move these things along.”
Guyana has already registered its disappointments from COP28 in Dubai.
Among other things, Jagdeo had expressed disappointment over the failure of talks on advancing carbon trading mechanisms at COP28.
Moreover, the Guyana Government has repeatedly called out developed countries over their failure to fulfil the US$100 billion per year pledge to assist developing nations fight against climate change.
Nevertheless, Guyana had used its voice at last year’s conference to solicit funding for climate adaptation measures for small-island and low-lying coastal developing states that stand to face the imminent brunt of climate change.
Jagdeo had previously reasoned that, “We have not waited for international funding to tackle adaptation issues here. We’re finding our own sources to tackle adaptation. Some countries unfortunately don’t have the assets we have, like the rest of the region. That’s why we act in strong solidarity with them to see that the monies that are pledged are delivered.”
“One point we made to the donors and international community to say back to their capitals is we expect that there will be some consistency in the accountability for climate funds…We’re not hopeful that the money will come soon, but it doesn’t mean we’re going to be dumbing down our voices globally in support of the other countries that need this now, especially the Caribbean.”
Jagdeo, who during his presidency was labelled as one of the “Heroes of the Environment” in 2008, and given the “Champion of the Earth” award in 2010, was crucial in crafting Guyana’s Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS), and was the driving force behind the country’s historic carbon credits deal with Norway.
In 2009, Guyana signed a historic forest protection accord with Norway which saw the heavily forested South American nation receiving payments for sustaining its rainforests to absorb global carbon emissions. Guyana earned some US$220 million from this five-year deal.
That agreement came to an end in 2015 with failure by the previous coalition Government to have it renewed.
Nevertheless, when the current People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Administration returned to office in 2020, it expanded the LCDS and sought certification of some 33.7 million carbon credits from the Architecture for REDD+ Transactions (ART) on December 1, 2022. That led to the signing of the new and historic deal with Hess. (G11)