According to an estimate published on Friday, more than 1,700 “lobbyists” from the fossil fuel industry—coal, gas, and oil—have been allowed entry to COP29, surpassing the number of representatives from nearly every nation attending the UN climate summit. With 1,773 registered participants, data revealed that the only nations with more fossil fuel lobbyists than delegates are host Azerbaijan (2,229), COP30 host Brazil (1,914), and Turkey (1,862). There are also 24 Indian lobbyists on the list. The majority of the Indians (17) arrived as representatives of various NGOs, followed by three from CII and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).
Representation from India among lobbyists
Among the Indians is the name of Pravin Dongre, a senior executive director and employee of Indian Oil Corporation, a public sector oil company. On the list that TOI was able to obtain, he was identified as a visitor of the non-governmental organization Griha Council. Dongre told TOI, however, that he wants to push the global biofuel alliance forward. He could not, however, clearly explain why he was added to the list of NGO guests. The examination of the participation list was carried out by Kick Major Polluters Out (KBPO), a global coalition of more than 450 organizations that have come together to demand that major polluters no longer have the ability to dictate climate action. The way the fossil fuel lobby controls climate discussions is like a venomous snake writhing around the future of our world. We must expose their deceit and take immediate action to undermine their power and make them responsible for the crimes of our world. According to Nnimmo Bassey, a member of the Health of Mother Earth Foundation and KBPO,
“it’s time to put the voices of people who have been fighting for sustainability and justice ahead of polluters’ interests.”
Implications for climate policy negotiations
Even though there are fewer fossil fuel lobbyists overall this year than there were at COP28 in Dubai, the analysis shows that they have been given more passes to COP29 than all of the delegates from the ten countries with the greatest climate vulnerability combined (1,033), highlighting how the industry’s presence is outstripping those on the front lines of the climate crisis. Chad, Solomon Islands, Niger, Micronesia, Guinea-Bissau, Somalia, Tonga, Eritrea, Sudan, and Mali are the ten most climate-vulnerable countries represented at COP29. As members of a trade group, a large number of “lobbyists” for fossil fuels were allowed entry to the COP. India’s FICCI with 17 members is at number three after the International Emissions Trading Association (43 delegates) and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (27) on the list of top ten biggest trade associations in attendance representing the fossil fuel industry. According to analysis, the Global North accounted for eight of the ten trade groupings with the greatest number of lobbyists.
Global reactions to lobbyist presence
The United Kingdom brought in 20 lobbyists; Canada invited oil firms Suncor and Tourmaline; Italy recruited workers from energy giants Eni and Enel; and Japan brought coal giant Sumitomo as part of their group.
“The KBPO said in a statement that Chevron, ExxonMobil, BP, Shell, and Eni, who brought a total of 39 lobbyists, are also linked to enabling genocide in Palestine by fueling Israel’s war machine.”
According to its data, access to the COP28 climate negotiations in Dubai was opened to a record 2,450 fossil industry lobbyists, up from 636 in Egypt the previous year. Based on the facts at our disposal, these figures are all that we can see. Some strong and frequently corrupt groups have networks of influence that extend far beyond. When it comes to disclosing who attends COP, we must improve. We observe that over 20% of participants on national delegations are still permitted to withhold information. According to Brice Böhmer of Transparency International,
“If we want to rebuild confidence in the global climate decision-making forum and see some success in the fight against the climate crisis, we can’t let dirty interests hide and conflicts of interest capture COPs anymore.”
Transparency and accountability at COP29
According to a recent report, at least 1,773 lobbyists for coal, oil, and gas have been allowed entry to the United Nations climate conference in Baku, Azerbaijan. This raises questions about the impact of the planet-heating business on the proceedings. According to the Kick Big Polluters Out (KBPO) coalition’s study, those lobbyists exceed the delegations of nearly every nation attending the conference, with the exception of Turkey, Brazil, and Azerbaijan, this year’s host.
