AFRICAN nations are arriving at COP29 with a fresh, determined approach, no longer willing to tolerate vague promises and incremental gestures that have yielded little at past events.
As COP29 gets underway in Baku, African delegates have taken a hard line, demanding that wealthier nations honour what they see as an accumulated $45 trillion climate debt.
Years of unfulfilled pledges have led envoys to set precise expectations for the global climate summit in Azerbaijan, with a top priority being quality climate financing.
Africa will intensify pressure for a new trillion-dollar financing goal for developing nations to replace the $100 billion pledge made at the 2009 Copenhagen summit and set to expire in 2025.
This assertive stance is a departure from years of unfulfilled pledges, with negotiators pushing for climate financing that directly targets areas critical to sustainable growth.
Concerns over shifting U.S. policy loom large in the African strategy. Bird Story Agency has learned that African negotiators will also push for firm commitments and safeguards to protect past pledges from potential U.S. policy reversals under a Trump presidency.
Trump’s previous decision to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Agreement has left African leaders wary of policy instability in Western nations, prompting them to push for terms that could weather such changes.
“Everything has been dampened by the U.S. elections,” said Mithika Mwenda, Executive Director of the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance.
“The person who pulled America from the Paris Agreement in 2016 is back, so the mood is not good. This year, Africa’s delegation i making clear that only meaningful, enforceable financing commitments will suffice.”
In Baku, the call for “grants, not loans” is resonating as African leaders push for financing that will lift, not encumber, their economies.
African negotiators insist that new climate funding must be delivered as grants, underscoring that loans would only exacerbate the debt burden on economies already under pressure from climate impacts.
With minimal contributions to global emissions, Africa has borne the brunt of the climate crisis. Floods, droughts, and soaring temperatures have made climate adaptation an urgent necessity.
To address these growing challenges, African countries are advocating for higher-quality climate financing focused on impactful, locally relevant solutions.
The aim is to channel resources into green industrial policies, agroecology for climate-resilient food systems, and renewable energy — sectors that promise both resilience and growth.
The African bloc prioritises immediate financing for projects that bolster local resilience, such as renewable energy infrastructure and green industrial policy.
Agriculture also ranks high, with negotiators emphasizing the need for funding agroecology to strengthen food sovereignty.
By investing in ecological farming methods suited to Africa’s climate, the bloc sees a pathway to both food security and adaptation.
This year, African states are bringing diplomatic leverage to the table, drawing on their expanding partnerships with China and Russia.
These alliances offer Africa a strategic bargaining chip, signalling to Western nations that failure to honour climate commitments could further propel the continent into the orbit of other global powers.
African negotiators say these relationships provide a credible alternative, reinforcing the continent’s ability to demand accountability from traditional allies.
- Seth Onyango is bird’s senior reporter
