The United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30) failed to yield the results expected from it. More than 190 countries attended the summit which lasted two weeks but in the end the outcome was a big disappointment for all. At one point the conference came close to collapsing as several developed economies and petro-states sought to protect their fossil fuel interests in sharp contrast to the stand taken by a majority of countries facing climate disaster.

The absence of the US from COP30 was symbolic, underlining the disdain of the super power for the global concern over the ever-deepening climate crisis. The world is dangerously close to breaching the 1.5°C limit for global warming set at the 2015 Paris climate summit, but the developed countries responsible for toxic emissions seemed little pushed to initiate remedial measures.

At COP30 in Belem, Brazil, 80,000 people gathered but there was no concrete outcome except for countless pages of discussions, flowery speeches and rhetorical pledges. Remarkably, what was lacking was a credible plan to cut the present level of carbon emissions to maintain global warming near 1.5 C.

This year global temperatures hit 1.55 C above pre-industrial levels, but delegates from the developed countries were nonchalant in their attitude and preferred to leave hard decisions in this regard to the future. At the conclusion of COP30, 119 countries submitted new climate plans for 2035. Together they account for 74 percent of global emissions, but their proposals only reduce emissions by less than 15 percent of what is needed by 2035 to keep 1.5 C within reach.

The UN has repeatedly said that the world remains on track for 2.3-2.8 C of warming even if every new pledge is fulfilled. But this stark warning was cavalierly ignored by those responsible for the climate disaster. The global road map to move away from coal, oil, and gas earlier received support from more than 80 countries, including the EU as well as Australia and South Korea. But this found no mention in the final communique. The previous summits recognised the need to shift away from fossil fuels. But the COP30 marked a most unfortunate turning away from this goal.

The Brazil summit also shillyshallied on the critical issue of climate finance. Support from wealthy countries is urgently needed by vulnerable nations to combat the life threatening effects of the climate crisis. They need to strengthen their defences against flooding and extreme weather conditions. But all they got was vague promises and commitments couched in ambiguous phraseology. Pakistan is a prime example of the colossal economic and environmental damage it has repeatedly suffered over the last few years due to extreme weather conditions, including torrential rains and urban flooding. But it has yet to receive the aid it needs for reconstruction and rehabilitation from UN agencies and other sources.

In this regard, it is important to mention here that the USD 120 billion a year that has been committed by 2035 was initially proposed for 2030, while currently the actual need of the countries fighting climate change is estimated at USD 360 billion annually. Unfortunately, most developed countries want to designate climate funding as loans rather than grants, which will drive poor countries deeper into debt and poverty.

The “Baku to Belem road map” that was supposed to explain how the world will mobilize $1.3 trillion annually for climate action by 2035 was obliquely discussed at the summit and reduced to a footnote in the final decision. For vulnerable countries facing rising debt and shrinking aid budgets, the COP30 outcome signals that the growing financing gap cannot be  expected to be narrowed in the near future.

The summit also failed to agree on concrete plans to halt deforestation. According to the 2025 Forest Declaration Assessment, deforestation is rising at an alarming rate, with 8.1 million hectares (20.9 million acres) lost in 2024 alone. Despite more than 90 countries at COP30 calling for a road map to combat deforestation and more than 80 calling for a fossil fuel phaseout, neither item appeared in the final text of the summit.

Climate experts say that of all the summits held during the last 30 years, COP30 was the most disappointing, divisive and acrimonious. The summit showed that the countries most responsible for global warming are least concerned and not ready to fulfil their responsibility in the matter. The countries vulnerable to climate change have been left to fend for themselves. We in Pakistan must prepare ourselves and mobilise indigenous resources to tackle the challenge of climate change in the years ahead.