COP-29: China leading the climate fight

The global community has gathered in Baku to have a philosophical debate on combating climate change. It is feared the debate will be dominated by blame games and shifting responsibility. However, China advocates philosophical debate, blame games or shifting of responsibility cannot solve the problems; only action can. Every country will have to play its role according to its development status and historical responsibility.

As a major country, China is cognizant it must lead by example. Hence, it introduced many policies, programmes and innovative solutions to combat climate change, making the country resilient against climate impacts, and contributing at the global level.

China is working to transform its agriculture, make it climate-compatible, use water smartly and efficiently, lower GHG emissions by implementing smart, green and technologically driven agriculture policies. This is important because an IFPRI study shows climate change will impact production of three major grain crops in China—corn, wheat and rice. According to the study, corn’s yield can drop by 1/5th, followed by wheat by 4pc and rice by 1.5pc by 2030.

The efforts are paying off, and green and organic practices are becoming new normal. Data shows between 2009 and 2018, China successfully reduced nitrogen fertilizer use by 14.58MTs, GHG emissions by 55.58MTs and pesticides by 542,000 tons. These efforts contributed to environmental betterment, better and healthier food availability and preserved soil fertility. It was calculated the added value of ecosystem services reached RMB3.2 trillion.

China is focusing on water security. This is extremely important for the country because water, arable land and population are unequally distributed between northern and southern parts. The statistics show per capita availability of water in northern and southern parts is 757 cm3 and 3208 cm3, respectively.

The low availability in the northern region has serious implications for China because it accommodates 42pc of population and has 60pc of arable land. Therefore, China is heavily investing in improving irrigation systems, diverting water from south to the north, climate-smart water governance and efficiency.

China has introduced comprehensive reforms to restructuring production, consumption, energy sources and consumption under New Philosophy of Development and High-quality Development initiatives. It is keenly focused on environmental needs and climate change and introduced the vision of Ecological Civilisation to ensure preservation and protection of nature’s boundaries and achieve goal of creating harmony between humans and nature.

China is making serious efforts to mitigate climate change by promoting clean energy. For example, in 2023, it invested $980 billion (equivalent to Switzerland or Turkey’s GDP). Clean energy investment, production and consumption added almost $1.6 trillion to national economy, which was the major growth driver. In 2023, share of renewable energy in national energy mix was 51pc.

The IEA predicted China would lead the world by installing 56pc renewable energy capacity during 2023-28. It was also a major supplier of wind turbines and solar panels in 2022, with 60pc and 80pc of global supply, respectively. China achieved marvelous success on the back of government policies, investment, and most importantly, generous allocations and investment in research and development.

China is promoting and has become a leader in electrical vehicle production and consumption to accelerate efforts to achieve net zero target before time. In 2023, China’s contribution to global EV sales was over 60pc. S&P Global predicted EV sales will cross 12M in 2024. Moreover, in 2023, China produced almost 40pc of global EVs and earned $42 billion from export.

China did not achieve it overnight. It was possible due to continuous efforts, policy framework, R&D spending and leadership of CPC. The story started with a policy initiative by CPC in 2001.

The CPC envisioned EV penetration in the Chinese vehicle market should be 45pc by 2027. Since then, China has spent billions of Yuan on R&D, designed pro-EV policies and encouraged consumers to go for EVs by offering incentives. For example, an EV buyer can get a free licence plate without any hassle, which can buyer cost 100,000 RMB in Shanghai, otherwise.

Such policies helped China achieve the target of 45 percent penetration before 2027. Further, Alix Partners’ survey indicates 97pc of Chinese respondents said they would purchase EVs (Europe 43pc, US 35pc). This means EVs will usher in a new boom in China’s auto industry.

China believes without cooperation and contribution at the international level, climate fight will be incomplete. Therefore, China devised a comprehensive policy under BRI to promote climate-compatible and environment-friendly development. National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) took the lead and introduced Green BRI policy.

The Green BRI got new impetus during second BRI forum in 2019. President Xi assured the world Chinese investment would have the characteristics of 1)- Sustainability, 2)- High-quality, 3)- Reasonable pricing, 4)- Risk resilience, 5)- Inclusiveness, and 6)- Accessibility. He tasked BRI-relevant Chinese ministries, institutes and companies to lead the discourse and path in promoting green and environment-friendly development.

To pursue this objective, numerous initiatives, including BRI International Green Development Coalition (BRIGC), Green Development Coalition, Silk Road Environment Programme, Green Silk Road Envoy Programme, Big Data Platform, Belt and Road Environmental Technology Exchange, Transfer Centre, Green Lightning and Green Cooling Initiatives were launched under the BRI.

However, the BRIGC is one of the most important initiatives to realise the dream of green and environment-friendly development. It is a joint venture of Ministry of Ecology and Environment, China, and over 100 international intergovernmental and non-government organisations. The BRIGC was created with three specific objectives: to promote policy dialogue and communication; act as an environmental knowledge platform; act as a technology transfer platform.

It is good to note China is equally focused on taking concrete actions to implement green BRI vision. First, it started to divert investment towards green energy, infrastructure and industry. For example, in 2020, investment in renewable energy resources was 58.2 percent, which was 19.6pc in 2014.

Moreover, China invested almost $7.9 billion in green energy-related projects in 2023. Besides, after President Xi Jinping’s statement, China abandoned its investment in coal power plants.

China worked with 29 BRI countries for low-carbon demonstration zones to build their capacity to combat climate change-related challenges. Third, China is also putting efforts into building capacity through programmes like Green Silk Road Envoys Programme to train 1,500 environmental officials, etc. President Xi Jinping announced China will invest in building capacity of 100,000 personnel from BRI member countries. Fourth, China is promoting use of technology to green the BRI.

In conclusion, these are only a few examples; we can find many more by analysing the BRI investment programmes, programmes under Ecological Civilisation, Green BRI, GDI, New Philosophy of Development, etc. China promotes green development under AIIB to bridge the financial gap. This indicates China does not talk, it acts.