Momentum on climate action is waning, Singapore minister says as COP30 looms

By Jun Yuan Yong

SINGAPORE (Reuters) -Momentum on global climate action is waning as geopolitical issues pile uncertainties on businesses and governments, Singapore's environment minister Grace Fu said on Thursday ahead of the COP30 climate summit, which will convene from November 10-21. 

Aside from geopolitical tensions, higher energy and food prices have created "political headwinds" that are making it harder for countries to take the drastic climate actions that are required, she told reporters in a group interview.

"The fact that the U.S. has pulled out of the Paris Agreement is an important factor ... there are a lot of political considerations as well," she added. 

Around 50,000 delegates and 190 governments are expected to travel to the rainforest city of Belem in Brazil for the annual summit. 

Fu said that despite the waning momentum, it is up to countries to find like-minded partners to collaborate on combating climate change. 

Singapore is already working to sign implementation agreements with "a dozen or so" countries that will allow it to source carbon credits under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, she said. 

It signed its 10th agreement with Mongolia in October, establishing a legally binding framework to generate and transfer carbon credits from carbon mitigation projects. 

" We hope that a lot more can be done to harmonise the regulations ... the disclosure standards, (and) also to build breadth and depth in the market," Fu said. 

The choice of the rainforest city of Belem as the venue for the summit this year has created logistical challenges for countries as nightly hotel rates soared amid a shortage of beds. 

Fu said the Singapore delegation has been cut by about half compared to last year, with the Sustainability and Environment Ministry mindful of the costs of sending delegates and the need to lighten the load on Belem's public infrastructure, including the use of private hire cars to travel to and from conference venues.

According to climate publication Carbon Brief, Singapore sent 262 delegates to COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan last year.

(Reporting by Jun Yuan Yong; Editing by David Stanway)