BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 10. Transitioning to green technologies requires significant financial investment, said Nigar Arpadarai, Member of the Azerbaijani Parliament and UN Climate Change High-Level Champion for COP29, said, Trend reports.
She made the remark during an event themed "Sustainable Development: Issues and Solutions".
"The shift to green technologies comes with a hefty price tag, requiring trillions of dollars to steer towards a 'green' economy. The question arises: where will this funding come from, and what financing mechanisms will be utilized? We're already witnessing the impacts of climate change. Personally, until I became involved in the COP process, I didn't fully grasp the urgency of the issue. Being in the current situation, you realize that while the world is diverse, it's also interconnected. Conversely, we see the challenges faced by various nations. For instance, small island states are declaring an existential threat, signaling their imminent disappearance. Discussions are ongoing, but decisions are imperative," she emphasized.
Arpadarai noted that awareness of the problem is growing, hindering progress to the next level without decisive action.
"In this regard, there's a pressing issue. For example, we're observing a decline in the Caspian Sea level. Other countries are also grappling with severe environmental issues. Looking at the disasters that have occurred this year, it's clear how grave they are. The responsibility to make decisions is significant, and if we fail to act, these disasters will only escalate. Scientists are already recognizing these problems, and we're witnessing them firsthand. This isn't just theoretical speculation about stability; it's a harsh reality," she concluded.
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, and its secretariat is located in Bonn.