Kristin Engel

South African delegates at COP30 are calling for developed countries to fulfil their pledges and legal obligations amid a developing deadlock regarding the Loss and Damage Fund – a fund meant to provide financial assistance to climate-vulnerable developing countries.

The COP of ‘implementation’ and ‘truth’ has opened in the Amazon with leaders demanding definitive action over aspirational climate policy. The outgoing COP29 president raised the stakes by presenting donor countries with a symbolic invoice for past-due climate finance.

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In the wake of Environment Minister Dion George’s dismissal from office during COP30, for the first time South Africa is not being represented by a head of state at the annual global forum where nations will agree on legally binding or non-binding international actions to address the climate crisis – an increasingly deadly threat that South Africa knows all too well.

In the wake of Environment Minister Dion George's dismissal from office during COP30, for the first time South Africa is not being represented by a head of state at the annual global forum where nations will agree on legally binding or non-binding international actions to address the climate crisis - an increasingly deadly threat that South Africa knows all too well.

Tension defines the second and final week of COP30 in Belém, Brazil, as ministers battle to resolve four major disagreements, including on climate finance and the 1.5°C ambition gap — with fear of substantive conflicts being ignored in favour of procedural speed.

Despite South Africa’s ministerial absence at COP30, the country’s technical team is actively engaged in the parallel talks and assisting the negotiating groups South Africa is part of.

The global climate summit in Belém, Brazil, was thrown into chaos on Thursday afternoon, 20 November 2025, when a massive fire erupted at the Africa Pavilion in the Blue Zone, the main venue for COP30. The incident temporarily shut down critical negotiations — one day before the summit was set to conclude on 21 November.

Tension defines the second and final week of COP30 in Belém, Brazil, as ministers battle to resolve four major disagreements, including on climate finance and the 1.5°C ambition gap — with fear of substantive conflicts being ignored in favour of procedural speed.

COP30 in Belém concluded weakly this weekend as delegates went into overtime, failing to secure a real adaptation deal, a time-bound fossil fuel phase-out or an actionable forest roadmap.