Poorer nations must be transparent over climate spending, says Cop29 leader

Exclusive: Mukhtar Babayev says clear accounting crucial to build trust as developing world seeks trillions in support

Poor countries must demonstrate clearer accounting and transparency to back up their calls for trillions of dollars of climate finance, the president of global climate negotiations has said.

Mukhtar Babayev, the ecology minister of Azerbaijan, who will lead the Cop29 UN climate summit in November, urged governments in developing countries to draw up reports showing their progress on cutting greenhouse gas emissions, and their spending on the climate crisis.