Zimbabwe has sent one of the largest delegations to the UN climate summit in Azerbaijan, while millions face hunger at home due to severe drought.
Official data from COP29 organisers shows Zimbabwe registered 238 delegates, with an additional 44 people listed as “overflow” participants who are funding their own attendance.
The numbers dwarf other African nations, with neighbouring South Africa sending just 51 delegates despite having a population four times larger than Zimbabwe’s 15 million people.
The government is spending about US$1.2 million on allowances alone, with each delegate receiving US$1,000 per day for the five-day conference in Baku.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa travelled to the summit on a private jet chartered from Dubai at US$12,700 per hour. The Boeing 737-700 BBJ, complete with a bedroom and VIP seating, cost taxpayers around US$200,000 for the round trip.
The total bill for the five-day trip, including commercial flights for other delegates, is expected to reach nearly US$2 million.
This comes as Zimbabwe faces its worst drought in four decades, with more than half of its population requiring food aid.
“The time for half measures is over,” Mr Mnangagwa told the summit on Tuesday, joining about 30 other African leaders who are addressing the conference.
The summit aims to establish new climate finance goals to replace the 2009 pledge by developed countries to provide US$100 billion annually to developing nations for climate action.
Zimbabwe’s delegation size has raised eyebrows when compared to other countries:
France: 63 delegates
Mozambique: 78 delegates
Botswana: 39 delegates
South Africa: 51 delegates
A senior opposition figure, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the BBC: “It’s a shocking waste of resources when people are starving.”
