The UN’s COP29 summit is considering a $250 billion international deal to help poor countries fight climate change, in the final stretch of its work.

According to Bloomberg, delegations from the 200 participating countries engaged in overnight negotiations to bridge differences and reach a joint statement.

The draft proposal calls for rich nations to provide $250 billion annually by 2035, through state as well as bilateral and multilateral agreements.

The proposal would more than double the existing $100 billion annual commitment that expires next year, but would have a decade to meet the new goal.

The proposal has drawn condemnation from climate activists who have pushed for much more money as trillions of dollars are needed to deal with the consequences of decades of unchecked greenhouse gas emissions. The remaining needs will have to be met by the private sector – through loans and other innovative financing mechanisms.

But the development showed negotiators closing in on a final deal that could be accepted by rich nations expected to take the lead in providing climate finance.

“There’s no deal that’s going to come out of Baku that doesn’t leave a bad taste in everyone’s mouth, but we’re looking at the possibility of a deal for the first time,” said Avinash Persaud, climate policy adviser at the development bank Inter-American . “The $250 billion pledge from developed countries is small because of the need for adaptation alone.”

In total, the latest draft proposal called for countries to work together to enable at least $1.3 trillion a year in total financing – most of it from private financing – by the middle of the next decade.