COP28: African leaders to make their unified voice heard at UN climate summit

After a year of record temperatures, deadly floods and devastating wildfires, not least in Africa, the annual UN summit — the COP28 climate conference — opened in Dubai on Thursday (30 November), aiming to stave off climate catastrophe.
Hosted by the oil-rich United Arab Emirates, the discussions at 28th edition of the Conference of the Parties (COP) will span everything from tackling agricultural emissions and food security to how countries can adapt to weather extremes as we heat the planet by burning fossil fuels. But three key issues are set to dominate talks: climate financing for vulnerable countries, bolstering emissions cuts pledges and phasing out fossil fuels. As Africa is grappling with some of the deadliest impacts of a heating planet, African countries will be seeking to be equal players in talks that are often dominated by wealthier, western nations.
Although Africa is responsible for less than 5% of global emissions, it is disproportionately affected by negative climate change impacts. So, for African countries, fighting climate effects is urgent — and a matter of survival. The African Group of Negotiators (AGN), which is currently chaired by Zambia, is expected to focus on the biggest issues that are a just energy transition and climate change finance, including funding for adaptation. But African leaders attending the COP28 in Dubai must avoid mistakes made during the inaugural Africa Climate Summit, where leaders adopted the so-called ‘Nairobi Declaration’, which in many ways failed to effectively prioritize human rights and climate justice for the continent, according to Amnesty International (AI). In particular, some of its proposals do not effectively combat the emissions that cause climate change or provide adequate support to those negatively affected by global warming,” said Tigere Chagutah, AI’s Regional Director for East and Southern Africa.