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Magsud Mammadov

As world leaders gather in Baku, Azerbaijan, for the UN climate change conference Cop29, an opportunity has arisen to align climate action with economic initiatives, in particular the Belt and Road Initiative.
One of the largest infrastructure programmes in history, the Chinese initiative was launched in 2013 to enhance global connectivity and economic integration across Asia, Europe and Africa. Recognising the environmental challenges, China is focusing on a green transformation of the Belt and Road Initiative.
With participation from over 140 countries and about US$1 trillion invested since its inception, the initiative holds enormous potential for promoting sustainable development. Azerbaijan, as Cop29 host, and China, as architect of a green Belt and Road Initiative, can work together to support the initiative’s evolution.
Nearly every belt and road country is represented at Cop29, united by a shared goal: to make their projects and nations greener and more sustainable. This is an excellent starting point for collaboration. In particular, Cop29 can catalyse the “greening” of the belt and road by acting as a platform for the Belt and Road Initiative International Green Development Coalition (BRIGC).
Established in 2019, the BRIGC is a collaborative platform that brings together governments, corporations and environmental organisations to promote sustainable practices within the belt and road framework. Its primary responsibility is to ensure the projects meet high environmental criteria and contribute to global sustainability objectives.
For the BRIGC, Cop29 provides an excellent opportunity to form strategic partnerships and share knowledge. By fostering collaborations with global partners, the BRIGC can enhance the Belt and Road Initiative’s capacity to implement green technologies and practices across diverse regions.


This collaborative environment is critical to the scaling up of successful green initiatives and to ensure their widespread adoption. Through dialogues and workshops, the BRIGC can exchange best practices and innovative solutions for green infrastructure. Such knowledge-sharing is vital for the replicating of successful models and to overcome the challenges in different belt and road countries, and can accelerate the achievement of sustainability targets.
China is firmly committed to the energy transition, with a US$676 billion investment in green technology last year, leading global investment in this sector with its 38 per cent share. Since its 2021 pledge to curb overseas coal financing, its green energy investments under the Belt and Road Initiative have been rising, reaching US$7.9 billion last year for solar and wind energy projects, and US$1.6 billion for hydropower.
Over the next two decades, China intends to increase its efforts by investing over US$6 trillion in low-carbon power generation and clean energy technologies. Cop29 should draw more attention to these efforts and promote investment and innovation so green belt and road programmes can meet their ambitious goals.
For example, Cop29 brings together stakeholders from all over the world, providing an excellent chance for Chinese state-owned enterprises and private organisations that are pioneers in the renewable energy industry to network, collaborate and scale up their initiatives globally. Exhibitions and demonstrations of solar, wind and smart grid technologies by Chinese companies can inspire similar investments globally, accelerating the shift to renewable energy.
Financial backing remains a cornerstone of success for a green Belt and Road Initiative. Cop29, which is dedicated to financing green initiatives, especially for developing countries, can play a crucial role in advocating for increased financial support.

China offers financing for green technologies through institutions it has established such as the South-South Climate Cooperation Fund, Silk Road Fund and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. The Beijing-headquartered AIIB, in particular, commits to making climate finance at least half of its annual financing approvals.
A financial infusion can extend the reach of the green belt and road to regions like Southeast Asia and Africa, with countries such as Indonesia, Vietnam, Kenya and Ethiopia standing to benefit immensely.
Delegates from belt and road countries taking part in Cop29 can see for themselves the success of the China-Azerbaijan green collaboration. Not far from the conference venue is the 230MW Garadagh solar power plant, and further is the 1,280MW Mingachevir thermal power project, both prime examples of sustainable infrastructure. Just the Garadagh plant alone is estimated to supply electricity to 110,000 households, cutting carbon emissions by 200,000 tonnes per year. Visiting these sites would provide valuable insights into the sustainable future offered by a green Belt and Road Initiative.
Linking Cop29 with China’s green Belt and Road Initiative would entail significant challenges. Firstly, ensuring balanced economic growth with environmental responsibility demands stringent governance and an adherence to sustainability standards across diverse belt and road countries. Coordinating among nations with varying regulatory frameworks and priorities also complicates the uniform implementation of green initiatives. In addition, securing consistent and adequate funding for sustainable projects remains a hurdle.


Despite being relatively new, the BRIGC shows a viable model for addressing these issues by overseeing the implementation of environmental standards and ensuring the investments contribute to long-term sustainability.
In conclusion, for the green Belt and Road Initiative, Cop29 in Azerbaijan is poised to be a transformative event. If Cop29 is used as a platform for the BRIGC to showcase successful belt and road projects, form strategic partnerships, share knowledge, secure commitments and promote high environmental standards, it can significantly advance belt and road green targets.
The alignment of climate action with economic initiatives such as China’s belt and road programme will be essential in the shaping of a resilient and sustainable future. With the potential to substantially reduce global carbon emissions and promote sustainable development across multiple continents, Cop29 could help to push the Belt and Road Initiative in its new phase of impactful, environmentally responsible growth.


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Climate change

Cop29 can work with the Belt and Road Initiative for a greener future

Climate activists project a message onto Azerbaijan’s embassy in London on November 7. Photo: AP

Environmental activists hoist a larger-than-life snake and slogans including “Weed out the snakes” as they protest against the oil and gas lobbyists allowed to attend Cop29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, on November 15. Photo: Reuters

China is already a climate finance leader despite West’s finger-pointing

Huang Runqiu, minister of ecology and environment, speaks at a session at the China Pavilion during the Cop29 UN Climate Summit in Baku, Azerbaijan, on November 15. Photo: AP

US climate envoy John Podesta (right) and Liu Zhenmin, Chinese special envoy for climate change, shake hands at a summit on methane and non-carbon dioxide greenhouse gases at the UN Cop29 climate change conference in Baku, Azerbaijan, on November 12. Photo: Reuters

‘Trump-proofing’ is distracting the world from far graver challenges

Donald Trump arrives at an election night event at the Palm Beach Convention Centre in Florida on November 6. Photo: TNS

On October 5, Tesla CEO Elon Musk speaks at a rally at the site in Butler, Pennsylvania, where Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt. Photo: AFP

Under Trump, the US will forfeit the global clean tech race to China

Workers produce offshore wind turbines in Fuqing in China’s Fujian province, on August 8. Photo: Xinhua

Workers set up photovoltaic panels at a clean energy industrial estate in Lingwu, Ningxia Hui autonomous region, on August 20. Photo: Xinhua

How do Central Asian countries see China’s Belt and Road Initiative?

Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Heads of State Council summit in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, on September16, 2022. Photo: EPA-EFE

A goods train headed for Central Asia leaves from Rizhao in China’s Shandong province on September 12, 2017. Photo: Xinhua

Vehicles on a bridge in Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region carry wind power components from a Chinese energy company headed for Kostanay, Kazakhstan, on April 24, 2020. Photo: Xinhua

An Uzbek cotton grower works on a plantation outside Tashkent, Uzbekistan on October 24, 2019. Photo: AFP

Cop29 is Azerbaijan’s moment to step into the global sunshine

People walk near the Baku Olympic Stadium, the venue of the Cop29 UN climate change conference, in Baku, Azerbaijan, on October 18. Photo: Reuters

The old town of Baku, beside the Caspian Sea, in Azerbaijan is a car-free warren of historic mansions. Photo: Peter Neville-Hadley

The Trans-Caspian International Transport Route. Photo: https://middlecorridor.com/en

Opinion

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China and climate change

Aligning climate action with major economic initiatives is essential to cutting emissions while promoting sustainable development


Aligning climate action with major economic initiatives is essential to cutting emissions while promoting sustainable development.


Belt and Road: Comment

Azerbaijan

Cop29

Belt and Road Initiative

Infrastructure

Renewable energy

Business of climate change

Central Asia

Expresses the views, ideas and conclusions of the author. (Eg. Enough of Crazy Rich Asians, think of crazy poor Hongkongers.)


Cop29 can work with the Belt and Road Initiative for a greener future

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Aligning climate action with major economic initiatives is essential to cutting emissions while promoting sustainable development

Aligning climate action with major economic initiatives is essential to cutting emissions while promoting sustainable development