Our Road to COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan.  

CLIMATE PRIORITIES SET FOR 2024 AND COP29

On the 21 and 22 March 2024, climate leaders and ministers gathered in Hamlet’s renowned Elsinore, at the Copenhagen Climate Ministerial, to align on expectations and envisioned outcomes of COP29 in Azerbaijan this November. The meeting marked the beginning of the “Road to Belem,” paving the way for COP30, set to be the largest and most decisive summit since the Paris Agreement.

The Copenhagen Climate Ministerial has evolved into a crucial annual touchpoint, particularly significant amidst ongoing geopolitical turbulence. Building upon the historical UAE consensus in Dubai at COP28, this year`s meeting focused on enhancing continuity while reaffirming a shared commitment to achieving the delivery of key promises and targets. In addition, it served as the first high-profile political platform for the “COP Troika,” of the COP28, COP29, and COP30 Presidencies (UAE, Azerbaijan, and Brazil respectively).

The need for a new financial architecture emerged as a central theme in the discussions, with the operationalisation of the Loss and Damage Fund and the next climate finance goal (the New Collective Quantified Goal, NCQG) being highlighted as the biggest issues on the COP29 agenda.

The climate ministers recognised the critical role of scaling both public and private climate finance, involving a much wider range of actors than today. In addition, delegates emphasised the importance of urgently directing resources to emerging and developing markets to accelerate mitigation and adaptation efforts.
Another major area of attention was the next generation of climate transition commitments on emission reductions (Nationally Determined Contributions, NDCs) that all nations are due to submit in the next 12 months. This coming period will determine whether the world can get back on a trajectory in line with the Paris Agreement, whilst building climate resilience.
At Resilient40, we are actively addressing these agenda points, as we mobilise more African youth and engage our expanding circle of high-level partners and stakeholders through our 2024 roadmap leading up to COP29.

Earlier this year, Chairperson and founder of Resilient40 Michael Kakande has been part of several key high level engagements alongside among other key decision makers, in preparation for COP29. The meetings were dedicated to the development of strong cross-sector partnerships that move forward the goals and targets of the Paris Agreement and the prioritisation of inclusiveness as the main theme of COP29.
As an active youth climate action network, we stand at the forefront of mobilising climate finance, accelerating the energy transition and promoting nature restoration – all essential for an efficient transition to a green economy across Africa and globally.

Our focus is on bridging key gaps by engaging the most affected in our local indigenous communities through our climate Café’s across Africa to carefully selecting and engaging the most influential stakeholders in coalitions and partnerships. Our COP roadmap 2024 includes various engagements highlighting climate finance mechanisms and clean energy solutions – all culminating the importance of engaging African youth perspectives and innovations during COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan.