Pressure piles on African negotiators to achieve new climate financing goal

As COP29 approaches, pressure mounts on the African Group of Negotiators (AGN) to put their best foot forward in achieving the new collective quantified goal on climate finance for the continent.

Pressure is building up for Kenya’s Ali Mohammed and Tanzania’s Richard Muyungi, the AGN chair and co-chair respectively, to lead the African negotiators into delivering equitable climate finance for the continent.

The push comes at a time when the industrialized countries seem to be unmoved by the continuous plea to settle their climate finance debts to developing countries.

At a meeting held in Nairobi, Kenya, on Thursday, climate justice movements presented a demand document to the AGN demanding a push for an ambitious, needs-based climate finance framework.

“Climate negotiations have perfected the act of kicking the can down the road. COP29 must put a stop to kicking the poor in the stomach. The climate crisis is biting in Africa,” lamented Amos Wemanya, Responsive Campaigns Lead at Greenpeace Africa.

“Communities' lives and livelihoods are on the line. For this COP29 to succeed, an ambitious and needs-based new collective and quantified goal on climate finance must be established.”

While addressing journalists, the movements’ lead held that climate finance is critical in enabling Africa to mitigate and adapt to the growing costly impacts of climate change and to ensure that its future development path is consistent with the goal of limiting global warming to no more than 1.5°C.

According to Charity Migwi, Senior Africa Campaigner at Oil Change International, climate finance should not be used for fossil fuel expansion.

“Fossil-driven development contradicts Africa's visions and sustainable development goals. Under the New Collective and Quantified Goal on climate finance, funding should not go to dangerous distractions that are expensive, speculative, a proven failure, or unproven at scale, typically serving to prolong the lifetime of fossil fuel assets,” she stated.

The watchdogs further held that Africa developments will also be critical to future greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions given that its energy use is projected to grow rapidly to meet its development needs.

A document presented to AGN noted that a zero-carbon, climate-resilient path offers Africa the opportunity to leapfrog to a more viable and better source of energy that can deliver on both its development and climate goals.

“There is enough money in the world to address the climate crisis. The proposal for a Climate Damages Tax on the extraction of fossil fuels is one example of a new source of finance based on the polluter pays principle which has the potential to generate billions of dollars for climate action. The bulk of these funds could go towards international support for climate action in developing countries where it is needed most.” read part of statement to AGN.

In the face of blockbuster profits for fossil fuel companies, rising GHG emissions and vast human suffering linked to climate-induced extreme weather events, the moral, economic and environmental case for making the fossil fuel industry and other high-emitting sectors pay has never been stronger.

Adding a voice from the frontline, Antony Madilschy Otieno, a Greenpeace volunteer and Mai Mahiu resident, recounted a recent climate disaster in his community.

"What happened in the early hours of April 29, 2024, in the Mai Mahiu area must never be allowed to happen again. Where human greed, profits-over-lives, disregard for human life through continued fossil fuel production. Ambitious and needs-based new collective and quantified goal on climate finance must be established,” he said.

Among the key demands presented to African negotiators were calls for a New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) that prioritizes increased public climate finance, backed by a Climate Damages Tax (CDT) on fossil fuel extraction to generate the necessary funds.

The campaigners also demanded for public and debt-free financing which would avoid further burdening Africa’s economies.