Ethiopia bids to host 2027 UN climate summit

Ethiopia has launched a bid to host the United Nations climate change summit in 2027 in the capital Addis Ababa, putting it in competition with Nigeria, which wants Lagos to play host.

Nearly 200 countries gather each year for the two-week "Conference of Parties" – referred to as COP - which is the main global negotiation between governments on tackling climate change.

"We have the capacity, the facilities, the location, the connectivity to host the much-anticipated climate summit," Ethiopian President Taye Atske Selassie told a UN event in Addis Ababa on Wednesday.

COP summits rotate around the world's regions. The 54 countries of the UN's Africa regional group must unanimously decide who will host COP32 in 2027.

Key role in guiding climate-related negotiations

Presiding over a COP summit gives a country a key role in guiding the negotiations and a chance to push its priorities.

African countries have long demanded that COP meetings yield stronger finance deals to help them adapt to the impact of climate change and access capital for clean energy projects.