By Florence Afriyie Mensah
Kumasi, Aug. 16, GNA – The Committee of African Heads of State and Governments on Climate Change (CAHOSCC), has been asked to ensure that the upcoming African Climate Summit, addresses the continent’s interests and priorities.
It is important that the Summit advocates transparent and meaningful dialogue between citizens and policymakers across the continent, to build a shared African narrative and agenda.
This will help to tackle the interlinked challenges of climate, energy, and development.
The call was contained in a petition jointly signed by more than 300 organisations, movements and civil society organisations in Africa, a copy of which was made available to the Ghana News Agency (GNA).
The signatories to the petition included the African Coalition on Green Growth, African Network of Young Researchers, African Women’s Communication and Development Network, African Parliamentary Network on Illicit Financial Flows and Tax (APNIFFT), as well as Africans Rising and Africa Coal Network.
Copies of the petition have also been sent to the Chairperson of the African Union, and Chairperson of the African Union Commission.
The inaugural Africa Climate Summit, being championed by Kenya’s President William Ruto, is scheduled to take place in Nairobi between September 4th and 6th, 2023, with an objective to address the increasing exposure to climate change and its associated costs, both globally and particularly in Africa.
The 2019 State of the Climate in Africa report, has shown that increasing temperatures and sea levels, changing precipitation patterns and more extreme weather, are threatening human health and safety, food and water security and socio-economic development of the continent.
The multi-agency publication, coordinated by the World Meteorological Organisation, provides a snapshot of current and future climate trends and associated impacts on the economy and sensitive sectors like agriculture.
It highlights lessons for climate action in Africa and identifies pathways for addressing critical gaps and challenges.
The Africa Climate Summit would thus serve as a platform to inform, frame, and influence commitments, pledges, and outcomes, ultimately leading to the development of the Nairobi Declaration.
In their petition to Kenya’s President Ruto, Africa’s most senior leader on climate change, and the Chairperson of CAHOSCC, the petitioners called on the authorities to focus strongly on renewable energy.
They said this was critical to counter efforts by the fossil fuel industry, Western interests, and fossil fuel-producing countries to hijack Africa’s fair energy transition
“There is the need to avoid all false solutions such as carbon markets and geo-engineering which are designed to encourage wealthy countries and people to continue polluting and turning Africa into a dumping ground and field for technological trials,” the petitioners noted.
The group said it was significant to implement and adopt climate policies that promoted a just and equitable phase-out of all new oil, gas, and coal projects on the African continent.
This was in line with the continent’s development interests and the recommendations of international organisations such as the IPCC, IEA, and other scientific organisations by cutting public and private financing for those projects, they said.
They cautioned that in the absence of an integrated approach to Africa’s climate, energy and development issues, concepts like “green growth” will simply further “neo-colonialism.”
“The Summit is a tremendous opportunity to chart a new course for the continent that creates a leadership vision for a cleaner, safer, and prosperous future that protects our people, our food systems, water resources and biodiversity.
That vision must boost our collective efforts to build our renewable energy systems and electrification infrastructure on a scale that benefits millions of Africans, while inspiring other countries to make interventions that prevent further global heating,” the petitioners advised.
The group said rather than advancing Africa’s interests and position on critical climate issues, the Summit seemed to have been ‘seized’ by Western governments, consultancy companies and philanthropic organisations, hell bent on pushing a pro-West agenda and interests at the expense of Africa.
“We are gravely concerned about the direction the African Climate Summit is taking and look up to you as Africa’s most senior leader on climate change.”
They however said as the Chairperson of the Committee of African Heads of State and Government on Climate Change (CAHOSCC), the Kenyan President was considered as the fulcrum around which Africa’s interests and position on climate issues revolved and this gave them high hopes.
GNA