APCC Conference: CSOs set 10 agenda for Africa at COP29

In light of the upcoming  29th Session of the UNFCCC Conference of Parties which will be held in Baku, Azerbaijan from 11 to 22 November 2024, African People are standing in solidarity to speak and defend the rights of Africans to a safe environment conducive to our growth and progress, even in the face of the environmental, social, and economic devastation escalated by the climate crisis particularly experienced in Africa.

Group of Civil Society Organizations across the continent led by the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA) made this known in a communique released on Saturday, October 12, 2024 during the Post African People’s Counter COP (APCC) Press Conference in Lagos.

The Conference which was organized following the convergence of African Climate Justice Collective (ACJC) from October 7 to 10 2024 in Saly, Senegal mandated Africa Group of Negotiators on Climate Change to go to with them to COP 29 in Baku Azerbaijan with the following 10 point agenda.

The communique reads in part: “As Peoples of Africa  we declare; Climate Justice Now: We demand climate justice for Global South communities at the centre of the climate crisis. The Global North Nations who have contributed the most to the crisis must lead the process of cutting emissions at source, and fund the needed energy transition as payment for the climate debt owed to the Global South. We call for reparations, remediation and compensation to the impacted peoples of Africa. We denounce all forms of false solutions to climate change such as REDD+, Net zero, and Geo-engineering which further entrenched the climate crises.

“End Fossil Fuel Extractions Across Africa NOW: All forms of fossil fuel exploration, extraction and production across Africa must be halted immediately.  It is time to prioritize sustainable practices through people-centred renewable energy that protects our ecosystems and supports local economies. Fossil fuel companies must pay for the rehabilitation of degraded land, oceans and rivers resulting from hydrocarbon extraction.

“Migration and Climate-Induced Displacement: With increasing climate crises, many Africans are forced to migrate, risking their lives in dangerous journeys to the Global North or becoming climate refugees within Africa leading to food, land and conflict insecurities. Addressing this requires mitigating climate impacts, such as droughts, flooding, and desertification, and ensuring that communities have the resources to remain in their homelands.

“Climate Debt, Reparations, and Economic Reforms: Climate reparations, alongside colonial reparations, must be paid to African nations and the Global South, reflecting the scale of damage caused by climate change and historical exploitation. These reparations should be in the form of grants, not loans that further entrench debt. African countries should focus on value-added beneficiation, and strategic partnerships, that elevate Africa’s position in the value chain. There is an urgent need for structural tax reform of the current financial architecture that will ensure transnational corporations (TNCs) pay the highest tax rates in the host countries where they extract resources, rather than in their headquartered nations.

“Reform Land Laws and Promote Food Sovereignty: African governments must embrace food sovereignty by prioritizing local food crops over cash crops and promoting seed preservation methods that resist GMOs. This protection must include ratified binding policies such as the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in Rural Areas. There is an urgent need to reevaluate customary laws that empower local communities.

“Energy Democracy for All:  The shift to renewable energy within Africa must be supported as a priority before Africa exports our resources for the Global North’s transition. Renewable energy projects must be socially owned and benefit local communities before industry. The transition must be grassroots-driven, ensuring that policies prioritise the well-being of people and the environment, not corporate profits.

“Stop Waste Colonialism: Africa is not a dumping ground and we are not disposable. It is therefore paramount for us as Africans to adapt to the Global Plastics Treaty which allows us to address plastic pollution across its lifecycle, from extraction to production to disposal.

“FPIC and Right to Say No: Communities’ rights to Free Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) need to be ratified and implemented in all extractive projects. Communities must have the right to say no or yes to development. Should communities say yes, they should dictate the terms of the project in a manner that benefits them and their environment? Compensation should be commensurate to the level of displacement and losses.

“Resilience building in Africa: Africans should rise against Systematic Oppression and climate injustice by sharing their resilience skills and traditional knowledge through storytelling, experience sharing, and learning and put this knowledge into practice in our African communities. This knowledge must be respected and incorporated into other systems and processes, as it is expert knowledge.

“There is also need for Gender Justice across the continent” it concluded.

The APCC Conference had over one hundred participants from social movements, grassroots communities, civil society organisations, academics, experts, workers, and others from 21 countries including, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Mali, Mauritius, Mauritania, Madagascar, Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Togo and Zimbabwe.

The Declaration was co-signed by:

Community Development Advocacy Foundation (CODAF), Sustainable Research and Action for Environmental Development (SRADev Nigeria), Center for Earth Works (CFEW), Pan African Vision for the Environment (PAVE), Renevlyn Development Initiative (RDI), Environmental Defenders Network (EDEN), Green Knowledge Foundation (GKF), Policy Alert Lekeh Development Foundation (LDF) and Community Action Against Plastic Waste.