Africa’s leading climate negotiators and campaigners are demanding a major reset in how the world tackles climate change, insisting that the continent can no longer rely solely on externally driven solutions that fail to reflect its unique vulnerabilities and priorities.
At the 13th Conference on Climate Change and Development in Africa (CCDA) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the African Group of Negotiators (AGN) and the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA) called for global climate action to be science-driven, but also science that is generated and owned by Africans themselves.
“African science must take center stage in guiding climate action and adaptation,” AGN Chair Richard Muyungi declared, emphasizing that needs-based climate finance is essential if the continent is to withstand the growing climate crises. “Climate finance is not charity, but it is a right, a duty, and a measure of trust,” he stressed, urging developed nations to step up and finance climate adaptation in Africa and other least developed countries.
Muyungi explained that Africa is entering a new phase of climate diplomacy, one informed by a deeper understanding of its ecological wealth backed by homegrown scientific knowledge. For Africa, the priority is not to be passive recipients of global policies but to shape climate solutions that reflect its people, landscapes, and economies.
Mithika Mwenda, executive director of PACJA, painted a stark picture of the inequities in the global climate finance system. He noted that although Africa contributes the least to global greenhouse gas emissions, it is among the hardest hit by climate impacts. In 2024 alone, more than 110 million Africans were affected by climate disasters: devastating floods in the Sahel, prolonged droughts in Southern Africa, and unprecedented heatwaves that scorched farmlands in North Africa.
“Achieving Africa’s climate goals by 2030 will require close to 3 trillion U.S. dollars. Yet Africa receives barely 3 to 4 percent of global climate finance flows. This is unacceptable,” Mwenda said. He added that one of the biggest failures in global climate action is the exclusion of Africa’s most vulnerable populations from decision-making processes. “We must push for structural reforms in the international financial architecture and demand full, timely, and fair access to the Loss and Damage Fund of climate change,” he argued.
The concerns raised go beyond numbers. They strike at the heart of everyday African life. Without reliable financing, farmers cannot adopt climate-smart technologies to secure food supplies. Communities vulnerable to floods and droughts cannot build resilience. Young people hoping for green jobs face limited opportunities if investments in renewable energy and just transition remain a trickle.
This is why Africa’s negotiators and campaigners insist that climate finance must be predictable and accessible, not bound in bureaucracy or delivered at the whim of donors. They argue that science-driven solutions will only be credible if they empower Africans to design, test, and scale responses suited to their realities.
The conference, which runs until Sunday, has brought together government officials, researchers, academics, civil society organizations, and development partners under the theme “Empowering Africa’s Climate Action with Science, Finance, and Just Transition.” Participants agree that the stakes are higher than ever. If Africa is sidelined in climate decision-making, the costs will be measured not only in lost opportunities but in lives and livelihoods.
For Africa, the call is clear: the world must recognize that climate finance is not a favor. It is a matter of justice, survival, and shared responsibility. And Africa itself must lead with its science, its voice, and its people at the forefront of climate action.
