COP 29 Presidency Urges Early Submission of Climate Transparency Reports
UNFCCC COP 29 President Designate Mukhtar Babayev, Azerbaijan’s Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources, sent a letter to parties, emphasizing the key role of Biennial Transparency Reports (BTRs) in implementing the Enhanced Transparency Framework (ETF) of the Paris Agreement on climate change.
The COP 29 Presidency encourages all parties to submit their BTRs in advance of the UN Climate Change Conference, to demonstrate a strong collective commitment to transparency.
Dated 29 August 2024, the letter is themed, ‘In Solidarity for a Green World.’ It recalls the Presidency’s vision, centered around the parallel and mutually reinforcing pillars of enhancing ambition and enabling action.
Reiterating the call for all parties to enhance ambition in the next round of nationally determined contributions (NDCs), it highlights transparency as “a cornerstone of mutual trust and accountability” that leads to robust, comprehensive, and measurable collective actions to combat climate change.
The COP 29 Presidency commends Andorra, Guyana, and Panama for submitting their BTRs early and signals Azerbaijan’s intention to submit its transparency report in advance of the November conference and the 31 December 2024 deadline.
According to the letter, the Presidency is working to enhance collaboration to build capacity to deliver on countries’ collective transparency commitments at COP 29 and beyond, including through a High-level Dialogue (HLD) to sustain momentum for increased transparency action in the lead-up to COP 29, on 3 September.
During the Dialogue, the Presidency formally launched the Baku Global Climate Transparency Platform and introduced the COP 29 High-level Pair for Transparency – Italy and Kazakhstan. Brazil, Georgia, Germany, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Türkiye, the US, and Uzbekistan pledged they will submit their BTRs early, and several others flagged their strong intent to do so as well.
Building on the first COP 29 transparency workshop, held in Baku from 13-14 May, the Presidency and partners will hold regional workshops for Eastern Europe, the South Caucasus and Central Asia, Africa, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, and the Caribbean, as well as online BTR workshops, “to ensure the widest possible participation and inclusion.”
With support from the UNFCCC Secretariat and in collaboration with UN agencies and partners, the COP 29 Presidency will convene a High-level Dialogue on Global Climate Transparency during the 79th session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA), on 25 September. It encourages parties to engage civil society, Indigenous Peoples, women, youth, and other key stakeholders in the transparency process.