Just days before the COP30 climate summit begins, Brazil has come up with a last-minute solution to an accommodation crisis that threatened to keep poorer nations from attending.

The host country has offered free cabins on cruise ships docked in Belem, the rainforest city where around 50,000 delegates are expected to gather from November 10 to 21 for global climate negotiations.

Belem, however, has only about 18,000 hotel beds, leading to soaring room rates of several hundred dollars per night. As of October 31, Brazil’s government confirmed that 149 countries had secured accommodation, while 37 nations were still negotiating.

Brazil has offered three free cabins per delegation aboard cruise ships moored in Belém to prevent low-income nations from being left out of the talks.

The initiative aims to support delegates from the world’s poorest and most climate-vulnerable countries, including African nations, small island states, and Least Developed Countries (LDCs).

A leaked email cited by Reuters revealed that the cabins would be financed through private donors and the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean, and coordinated by Brazil’s government in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

According to the email circulated by the U.N. climate secretariat (UNFCCC), these cabins were meant to supplement existing bookings and would be provided “free of cost” to eligible delegations.

COP30 President Andre Corrêa do Lago stated that the initiative will help ensure that all developing countries could attend the summit despite financial and logistical hurdles.

The accommodation shortage had already raised alarms, with several African and island nations saying they could not afford to attend even after receiving subsidies from the U.N. and the Brazilian government. The issue forced the U.N. to hold emergency meetings to prevent countries from missing out.

Some wealthier European nations have also reportedly considered skipping this year’s summit after being quoted accommodation prices exceeding $500 per person per night.

Despite the challenges, Brazil said it is committed to hosting an inclusive COP30 summit where every nation, rich or poor, can have a say in future climate plans.

Reference: Reuters