African CSOs hold Pre-COP 26 consultative meeting in Glasgow, UK

31 October 2021| A section of African Civil Society Organisations attending the 26^th United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conference of Parties (COP26) in Glasgow, United Kingdom held a consultative meeting on 31^st October 2021 to agree on common positions to take as observers to effectively contribute to the negotiations. Such a process is critical in ensuring decisions taken at COP26 guarantee the future of vulnerable groups significantly impacted by the negative impacts of climate change.

Contributions by CSOs during negotiations cannot be overlooked. Since African governments have developed their position for all the agenda items listed for negotiations during COP26, it is imperative that CSOs meet to inform each country’s position by making contributions and to draft advocacy strategies to influence negotiations at the COP.

The ritual during previous COP meetings has been to first converge as a collective, to plan as African Civil Society representatives from different parts of Africa.

African leaders must speak with one voice

About 190 Heads of States are expected to attend the Glasgow event. Africa needs to make demands and speak with one voice at this COP and the continent should be at the Centre of the negotiations. Often, however, African leaders tend to focus on negotiating for individual countries’ deals instead of speaking with one voice. For instance, in the past leaders have tended to negotiate for investment deals for their countries, not focusing on the climate crisis facing the Continent.

During the meeting, Dr Mithika Mwenda, PACJA Executive Director, said few stakeholders in African appear to be pursuing the Climate Justice agenda: “When we attend the COP, we are at the centre of global interactions. It is one thing to attend the conference and it is another to influence the decisions made at this global convening. Our presence here should aim to influence the outcome of the discussions”. 

The climate crisis is not confined to countries or restricted by national boundaries. There is need for Africa to stand up as a continent and raise its voice on the most critical issues facing its people, particularly in accessing climate finance for climate change mitigation and adaptation, and dealing with loss and damage. The issue of climate finance is particularly critical because it is a prerequisite for all the other issues to be addressed. Technology transfer cannot be done without the climate finance and climate change adaptation which is urgent, cannot be done without finance. According to Robert Muthami, a Climate Policy Analyst and member of PACJA Board, the cost of adaptation in vulnerable developing countries is expected to rise rapidly after 2020.

Africa faces serious development decline without climate reforms

Kate Nkatha, Commercial Director, Fairtrade Africa (FTA) said the farming communities are greatly impacted by changing weather, leading to decreased food security, loss of property, deteriorating infrastructure, among other impacts. “Take cocoa for example – 70% comes from West Africa, directly supporting over 100 million people in Ghana, Ivory Coast… and millions more indirectly in Africa”, she said.

Billions of people in the supply chains across the world depend of the Cocoa to support their livelihoods – in terms of transportation, manufacturing, retailing, legislation and taxation and any negative impact in Cocoa production from West Africa has a ripple effect to the whole world. Climate change has that potential to cripple families.

Respect and honour Paris Commitments

Previous commitments by all countries must be respected and honoured as the climate agenda cannot be separated from the development agenda; the missing link is the finance. According to Kate, COP26 is truly a pivot opportunity to advocate for delivery of equitable and robust responses to climate change promises.

The Paris Agreement was a massive compromise, reached in order to bring into existence a multilateral regime capable of progressively pushing nations towards climate actions that would reverse the trend of ever-increasing greenhouse gas emissions. Even as nations were signing the agreement, it was obvious that the national targets submitted as part of the Paris agreement were inadequate to meet the professed global ceiling of 2 degrees warming, let alone the desired 1.5 degrees limit.

This inconsistency was recognized in 2015 because it was important to reach an agreement that bound everyone, from the most reluctant to the most climate concerned nations. Climate activists gambled that the national targets would be progressively improved. Five years later in COP25, the implementation of the Paris Agreement would be agreed and it set the stage for COP 26 when the world would expect to see its first ratcheted up NDCs.

Disappointment at COP25

COP 25 was a great disappointment, however, and the talks in Madrid were unproductive and demoralizing and particularly to the African participants in the negotiations since many of the African expectations were not met. The unprecedented Covid-19 pandemic only escalated this challenge since the long awaited COP26 was postponed to 2021, further delaying the opportunity to redeem what was lost in Madrid.

After more than one year during which COVID-19 stalled critical decisions and actions, the 26th Conference of Parties (COP26) in Glasgow, UK, is crucial in increasing momentum to address the climate emergency. Earlier this year, the UNFCCC Executive Secretary, Patricia Espinosa, advanced four elements that will constitute a successful COP26: (i) promises made to developing countries are kept, especially the pledge by developed nations to mobilize $100 billion in climate finance annually by 2020; (ii) governments wrap up outstanding items and negotiations to fully implement the Paris Agreement; (iii) countries lower emissions and raise climate ambition, not only concerning emission reductions but also increasing ambition in adapting and building resilience to the impacts of climate change; and (iv) no voice or solution is left behind, through re-engaging with observers and Non-Party Stakeholders in a unity of purpose.

As the world grapples with the Covid-19 pandemic that has brought economies to a near standstill, the climate crisis continues to adversely impact livelihoods in many African countries.

PACJA hopes that process of accessing Green Climate Fund resources will be streamlined to make it easier for countries to implement their NDCs and provisions of the UNFCCC.