Accommodation Crisis at COP30

The Brazilian government, which will host COP30 in November, announced that it is offering accommodation for representatives from some of the world’s poorest countries for as little as $220 per night, after African and Pacific delegations raised serious concerns about the lack of affordable accommodation in the city of Belém.

The majority of these rooms are located on two cruise ships that will dock in Outeiro Port, a 30-minute drive from the climate summit. These ships offer a total of 3,900 cabins and 6,000 beds. "These two large ships are part of a diverse range of accommodation options designed for all COP30 participants," said Valter Correia, COP30 Special Secretary for Logistics.

Brazil's COP30 presidential team said in a statement that these accommodations would be allocated primarily to "the 98 smallest developing countries and island nations," while delegates from other countries would be able to book accommodations for up to $600 per night at a later date.

$220 is considered expensive

However, climate negotiators from Asian and Pacific countries who spoke to Climate Home complained that the announcement came too late and that the price limits were still too high. Adao Soares Barbosa from the Southeast Asian nation of Timor-Leste said he still hadn't been booked and that, at $220 a night, accommodation was "still too expensive for developing countries."

Anne Rasmussen, chief climate negotiator for the AOSIS group of small island states, said she had “seen reports” about the proposal and welcomed the initiative, but was waiting for “official communication” from the COP30 presidency.

The COP30 presidency's statement comes three weeks after African and Pacific island nations publicly expressed concerns that room costs could prevent them from participating in the talks.

The United Nations (UN) subsidizes the cost of participation for up to three people in the least developed countries and some small island developing States. However, this payment is subject to a cap, known as a per diem, which is determined by the cost of living.

UN guidelines for the city of Belém call for a daily allowance of $149. The UN's climate arm has a very limited budget, and there's been no word yet on whether this limit will be increased for the COP. Therefore, a negotiator representing one of the 98 governments said, "Even this so-called $220 price limit is too high for most delegates to reasonably afford."

A Privileged Criticism of the COP

“This situation is increasingly turning the summit into an exclusive COP, where only those with large budgets can attend,” another negotiator commented.

Negotiators from the 57 developing countries not included in the scope of the agreement are also unhappy with the situation. One African official said, "$600 per person is way above our budget. If the accommodation problem isn't resolved, it will be very difficult for us to participate."

Another official from one of these 57 countries also said the process for determining which countries were offered the $220 price cap was "not transparent." He emphasized that some countries, despite benefiting from the price cap, had higher per capita incomes than others that were not. For example, Kenya, one of the countries offered the price cap, has a per capita gross domestic product three times the size of Nigeria, which was not eligible for the price cap.

When asked how the 98 countries were selected, the COP30 presidency explained that the list consisted of the UN's technically defined categories of Least Developed Countries and Small Island Developing States. However, no explanation was provided as to why countries like Kenya, Sri Lanka, and Nicaragua were included on the list.

There are rooms listed on Airbnb for under $100 per night in Belem for the COP30 dates, but many governments, companies, and NGOs do not allow Airbnb bookings due to security and other concerns.