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The
much-publicised event has in fact left climate campaigners concerned that the
Summit will be another lost opportunity to advance meaningful climate action on
the scale and timeline needed to avoid the worst case scenarios of climate
change in Africa.
Kenya
President Uhuru Kenyatta will be hosting the 3rd edition of the One Planet
Summit, which is convened by French President Emmanuel Macron, with the support
of the World Bank and the United Nations.
Officially,
the meeting aims to highlight "the unique role of Africa as a global
partner facing both challenges and opportunities, especially in the area of
innovative solutions for adaptation and resilience" and to promote "the
concrete actions needed to accelerate the global transition to a low-carbon
economy ".
The
World Bank Group is stepping up its climate support for Africa by providing $22.5 billion for Africa for climate
adaptation and mitigation for the five years from 2021-2025. This more than
doubles the commitment to climate-related projects over the last five years.
The
funding is part of the Bank Group’s 2025 Targets to Step Up Climate Action,
launched in December 2018 during the UN’s COP24 in Poland. It will help African
countries manage the risks of a changing climate while unlocking new investment
opportunities. IFC and MIGA, the Group’s private sector arms, will also
continue to ambitiously grow their climate activities in Africa.
“People across Africa are already experiencing the
growing impacts of climate change. This region is particularly vulnerable to
increasing floods, droughts and destructive storms,” said Interim President of the World
Bank Group, Kristalina Georgieva. “We have to do more and do it faster, or millions of people could be
plunged into poverty. That’s why the World Bank is providing more money to
build resilience and help communities cope with the effects of climate change
in Africa.”
President
Macron launched this initiative in December 2017 to accelerate the
implementation of the 2015 Paris Climate agreement, which has seen slow
progress, especially in decarbonizing the world economy, helping vulnerable
countries and financing the low-carbon transition, particularly in Asia and in
Africa.
Landry
Ninteretse, Regional Team Leader for 350Africa, said, “Accelerating the global
transition towards low carbon emissions means phasing out all fossil fuels
projects. Globally, coal plants are being shut down one after another and
strong commitments are being made by leaders in the global “North”.
However,
Africa remains the only continent where coal seems acceptable, and continues to
grow, while it’s the most vulnerable continent to climate change. Ending all
coal projects in the short term and committing to not financing any new coal
infrastructures is the only meaningful promise we’re expecting from this
Summit. Anything short of that would amount to just paying lip service to
climate action.”
Clémence
Dubois, campaigner at 350 France, said: “French President Macron is convening a
summit to advance climate action in and for Africa, while French oil giant
Total is still extracting fossil fuels from Western Africa and many large
French companies are still involved in fossil fuels extraction and production
across the continent. African communities will never be safe from the worst
impacts of climate change, as long as fossil fuel operations are rapidly phased
out. If Macron is serious about being a climate champion, he should have a chat
with French companies still polluting Africa and exploiting its resources. This
is the pledge we’d like to see.”
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