Libreville, Gabon: Doubling financing for adaptation, loss and damage and recognition of Africa as special needs and circumstances region will constitute the main agenda for the continent at the 27th Conference of parties (COP 27) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) set for Egypt in November.
Speaking at a High-Level CSO Forum currently ongoing in Libreville, Gabon, ahead of the regional Africa Climate Week meeting, Mithika Mwenda, the Executive Director of the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA) said Africa would advance the need to implement climate response measures that will enable the continent to address its climate challenges.
“The UNFCCC and global community must create highly accessible climate financing for communities in the frontline of the climate crisis. Establishing a Loss and Damage Financing Facility remains a top agenda,” he said.
Africa and other vulnerable nations, particularly communities on the frontline of the climate crisis, are the bread and butter of UNFCCC and global institutions charged with climate change. COP27 decisions must make sense to this segment of the community they purport to serve; else how, these institutions shall be deemed irrelevant to the cause they were established to pursue.
Equally important for Africa is the agenda for access to renewable, affordable, reliable and efficient energy. The CSOs demand that this is treated as a right and realized not at a cost to communities on the frontline of the climate crisis in Africa.
Prof Tahseen Jeffrey of the Glasgow Caledonia University, UK, opined that Injustice is about life and death.
Addressing the climate crisis can only succeed if the international community addresses the climate injustices faced by Africa. After the failures of previous COPs to truly address this concern, COP27 presents a unique opportunity to put Africa at the centre of negotiations and decisions.
African civil society organizations are mobilizing to make COP27 the “African People’s COP”.
Dr Mithika said an African people COP is one that truly takes on board African voices and needs, way beyond the hosting of the Conference on African soil.
The Africa Climate Week presents a unique opportunity for communicating the outcomes of the discussions to key regional decision-makers.
Africa needs to get a better narrative that underpins climate justice on the financing loss and damage as well as adaptation. This, according to Prof Tahseen requires that Africa needs to advance evidence-based advocacy.
Africa must package evidence with communities’ voices to amplify the losses and damage as with cases of Durban, Malawi, Mozambique (with floods), droughts in East and horn of Africa, among other malaise because of the failure of the global community to address the climate crisis.
