Analysis: Which countries have sent the most delegates to COP24?

(CarbonBrief, 4 Dec 2018) On Sunday, the 24th Conference of the Parties (COP24) got underway in Katowice in Poland, bringing thousands of negotiators together for two weeks of intensive climate talks.

COP24 is widely considered to be the most important UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) international climate negotiations since the Paris COP in 2015. The latest talks come before an end-of-year deadline to produce a “rule book” to flesh out the detail of the Paris Agreement, such as how the ratchet mechanism will work for ramping up ambition on emissions reductions.

At Paris, there was a provisional list of around 15,000 participants present on behalf of a particular country, or “party” – plus another 8,000 unofficial delegates – while at last year’s COP in Bonn, there were around 11,300 participants.

So, how many are present in Katowice? Carbon Brief dives into the data to find out.

Party delegates

According to the provisional list (pdf) published by the UNFCCC, there is a grand total of 22,771 registered participants at COP24. This includes 13,898 people representing specific parties, 7,331 from observer organisations – such as scientists, business groups and various non-governmental organisations – and 1,541 journalists.

At just under 14,000, the total number of party delegates is smaller than in Paris, but larger than in Bonn last year.

External link

CarbonBrief, 4 Dec 2018: Analysis: Which countries have sent the most delegates to COP24?