This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly on December 30, 2024 - January 12, 2025

Global climate talks in Baku, Azerbaijan, earlier this month finished 33 hours late with mixed results. COP29, or the 29th Conference of Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, went down to the wire to reach agreement on climate finance and other contentious issues.

The talks attracted more than 66,000 people, including 33,000 negotiators, for two weeks of intense discussions to agree on key policies and plans to address climate change.

One of the key areas for action was to set targets for delivery of finance for a global transition to a low carbon society. Although it was agreed that it was critical to scale up finance flow to developing countries, from public and private sources, to US$1.3 trillion per year by 2035, there was strong disagreement over how much of this would be delivered by developed countries that are deemed responsible for the bulk of the global climate change so far.

In the end, and only after delegates from some countries walked out of the meetings, it was agreed that developed countries need to take responsibility to triple the level of finance flow to developing countries to US$300 billion annually by 2035. However, this was still considered inadequate by many.

Other important decisions at COP 29 included agreement on arrangements for the new Loss and Damage Fund and also how carbon market mechanisms could enable the international sharing of efforts for emission reductions.

An equal number of issues remained unresolved, including how to move forward on a key pledge made in 2023 to transition away from fossil fuels. Agreement was also elusive on guidance for a just transition to a low carbon society for workers from industries linked to fossil fuels or high greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

The finance agreement at COP29 comes as all countries are formulating stronger national climate plans (Nationally Determined Contributions, or NDCs), which are due from all countries next year. These new climate plans must cover all GHG and all sectors to keep the 1.5°C long-term warming limit within reach.

According to the World Meteorological Organisation, 2024 is on track to be the warmest year ever, with the first nine months more than 1.5°C above the pre-industrial levels. The past 10 years are also the warmest on record, Antarctic sea ice is at the second lowest level on record and glacier loss is accelerating around the world.

Extreme weather and climate events are leading to massive economic and human losses, with massive impacts from droughts, floods and storms affecting millions worldwide.

In Malaysia, we are seeing the effects of climate change with severe rainfall and flooding events and intensified storms and coastal erosion, as well as more frequent heatwaves and droughts.

Bank Negara Malaysia has identified more than 50 climate-related disasters causing RM8 billion in losses over 20 years and affecting more than three million people. The increasing severity and frequency of major floods and dry spells have greatly affected livelihoods, particularly those in the agriculture sector.

To resolve the global problem of climate change, we need the world to act in unison to reduce GHG emissions, but we also need to act in Malaysia to enhance our resilience against the current and expanding impacts of climate change, as well as reduce our own emissions.

Although Malaysia’s annual GHG emissions are not that high (325 million tonnes — less than 0.7% of global emissions), our emissions per capita of 8.4 tonnes per person per year is among the highest in the region and needs to be reduced.

Malaysia has committed to cutting its net emissions to zero by 2050 but it will be a challenge to meet this target while maintaining the well-being of the public. A road map for emission reductions is currently being finalised along with a Long-term Low Emission Development Strategy (Lt LEDS).

The majority, or more than 70%, of emissions comes from the energy sector, so we need to accelerate our transition from 25% renewable energy currently to a target of 70% by 2050.

The agriculture and plantation sector generates 15% to 20% of the total GHG emissions, with a recent analysis indicating that up to 70% of this is from agriculture and plantations in peatland areas.

Although the government stopped the further development of peatlands in 2019, there are still an estimated 1.3 million ha of drained peatlands, covering nearly 4% of our land area.

A key action in the future is to improve water management in these peatland areas, restore them back to forests or introduce new crops suitable to be grown with high water tables and low emissions.

Next year, Malaysia as the incoming chair of Asean needs to show its leadership by bringing the Asean member states together to set ambitious emission reduction goals, implement effective climate adaptation strategies and gear up for the next round of climate negotiations in Brazil to secure further regional and global commitments and partnerships to address the climate crisis.

Faizal Parish is director of the Global Environment Centre in Malaysia. GEC is a non-profit organisation that aims to safeguard the environment and promote sustainable management of resources through partnerships with communities and like-minded organisations.

Save by subscribing to us for your print and/or digital copy.

P/S: The Edge is also available on Apple's App Store and Android's Google Play.