Marc Poynting
Climate and environment researcher

The final draft of the agreement has been published and specifies the amount that developed countries should give to development nations to help them fight climate change.

The overall figure is at least $300 billion (around £240 billion) a year by 2035, the previous offer was for $250 billion – but this was rejected.

Reading the fine print, the text says that developed countries should “take the lead”.

This apparently leaves the door open for other countries, such as China, to potentially contribute, even if they are not obligated to do so.

It’s also worth noting that the $300 billion includes both public and private sources – so not all of it will have to be paid directly by governments.

The text still includes a broader ambition to reach $1.3 trillion by 2035 – the figure a UN-backed report recently said developing countries would need to source from outside.

But the $1.3 trillion figure is surrounded by vague UN language, and it is understood that it would involve more private financing than the main $300 billion target, possibly including loans.

Developing countries do not favor loans because they fear that they will increase their debt, which is often already considerable.