The Nairobi Declaration of the Africa Climate Summit by Heads of States has been welcomed by the Non-State Actors' Committee (NSAC), describing the outcome as a positive step towards a more ambitious, fair, equitable, ecologically just and inclusive global response to the climate crisis.
The Committee,
supported by the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA) strives for the advancement
of a pro-African agenda in all key climate spaces.
Below is the
submission of the Committee:
We recognise the
pressing need for the global community to decrease emissions, decarbonise
economies and align with the Paris Agreement, and appreciate the Declaration
for reaffirming the principles of common
but differentiated responsibilities and equity, which are vital for a just
and efficient global response.
We also commend the
Declaration for acknowledging the problem of loss and damage caused by climate change, which is already
affecting several African communities. We urge the international community to
put into effect the Loss and Damage Facility established during COP27 and to
provide sufficient and consistent assistance to the countries and individuals
who are most vulnerable.
As NSAs, we strongly
support the Declaration's call for investing in public finance for green
economic development. We equally reiterate our unequivocal support for
reforming the global financial architecture to address African countries'
challenges, especially climate finance. Particularly, we welcome proposals for
debt relief, concessional finance, and innovative financial mechanisms, and
endorse the Bridgetown Process, which aims to align finance with sustainable
development goals and human rights – all in a sense, signalling the
acknowledgement of the imperatives of climate justice!
We appreciate the
recognition of the critical importance of reversing biodiversity loss and
explicit commitments made to protect and enhance nature and biodiversity, and
to halt and reverse the loss of biodiversity, as well as restoration of
degraded lands.
However, we are still
concerned that the Summit missed an opportunity to have a strong African
position that established the route to addressing the climate crisis.
We express our
disappointment that the Declaration does not prioritize adaptation as a
critical concern for Africa and leaves it a mere peripheral issue. We would
like to remind the Heads of States that adaptation is not only crucial for
survival but also a matter of justice. Africa is one of the regions that are
most affected by climate change, even though it contributes the least to its
causes. Therefore, we urge the authorities to accord equal attention and
resources to both adaptation and mitigation in their national and international
actions. Additionally, we demand that adaptation strategies are designed based
on local knowledge, needs, capacities, and human rights principles.
We are also concerned
that the Declaration does not adequately address the emotive issue of just
transition, which is crucial for ensuring that no one is left behind in the
shift to a low-carbon economy. We note that the Declaration only mentions just
transition once without any details or commitments on how we should define it in
our own narratives and perspectives, and how it will be implemented.
To this end, the NSAC
urges Heads of State to adopt a more comprehensive and inclusive approach to
just transition that is contextual and responsive to African realities,
aspirations, and desires, and will discourage experimentation on false
solutions that exacerbate the climate crisis. This approach involves the
meaningful participation of workers, communities, civil society, and other
stakeholders in planning and implementing policies that promote decent work,
social protection, human rights, gender equality, and environmental justice.
Such an approach should also ensure the vast resources driving the transition,
including wind, solar and geothermal, as well as critical minerals spread
across the continent, restore hope to the people who have known such resources
to be the source of pain, conflict and misery.
Curiously, also, the
Summit did not pronounce itself on how African leaders will collectively work
together to exert pressure on developed countries to deliver on the financial
commitments previously made by the historical emitters. The failure to advance
for framework for pushing for a funding mechanism to fund some of the critical
climate-related interventions that protect those most affected by inequality
and discrimination who are often children, youth and women, was another
waterloo for the Summit’s Declaration.
The propagation and
political advancement for implementation of the carbon market with no clear
evidence that it works remains one of the bold posters of the Global North
attempting to advance approaches that exonerate them and transfer the burden of
action to the victims of their actions.
Right at the onset,
the Summit exonerated the rich countries from taking full responsibility for
their historical and current emissions that have taken us to the current state
of global warming.
We are disappointed
the Declaration's Call to Action does not reflect this recognition of the value
of nature and biodiversity. Consequently, the NSAC urges the Heads of State to
include more specific actions and targets in their national and regional plans
and policies for biodiversity conservation and restoration. Additionally, the
NSAC calls on them to ensure that they integrate nature-based solutions into
their mitigation and adaptation strategies.
As we head to COP28,
NSAC insists:
1. Developed countries fulfil their historical
responsibility and provide adequate and predictable finance, technology
transfer, and capacity building to support adaptation, mitigation, and loss and
damage in Africa. We are much more keen to collaborate in pushing for
grant-based funding mechanisms.
2. Reiterate our Position on the rejection of
the promotion of Carbon Markets that are not responsive and do not serve the
climate justice imperatives for Africa. We further urge for continued dialogue
in the spirit of closing knowledge gaps on Carbon Markets that are apparent, at
all levels.
3. African leaders commit to a just and
equitable transition to renewable energy, ensuring that energy access is
prioritised for the poor and marginalised and that community ownership and
participation are guaranteed.
4. Urge African leaders to stand by the principles
of climate justice, human rights, gender equality, and intergenerational equity
in all climate policies and actions
The NSAC is optimistic
that this Declaration is a forward step towards accomplishing more ambitious
and comprehensive climate action in Africa and globally. The NSAC is fully
prepared to collaborate with the Heads of State and other stakeholders in the
implementation of the Africa Climate Summit's Declaration and in collectivizing
Africa’s position towards COP28.
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