As preparations intensify ahead of the 2025 UN Climate Change Conference (COP30) in Belém, Brazil, African stakeholders have adopted a seven-point communiqué calling for urgent and coordinated climate action that aligns ambition with development needs across the continent.
This is contained in a statement signed by Mr Ugochukwu Uzuegbu, Communications Officer, Society for Planet and Prosperity (SPP) and made available to newsmen on Saturday in Lagos.
The statement said that the stakeholders emphasised that Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) — the central tool under the Paris Agreement — must serve as practical roadmaps for national development.
They urged that future NDCs be ambitious, feasible, and harmonized with national plans, while reflecting Africa’s social and economic realities through inclusive participation.
The seven-point communiqué called on African governments to treat the climate crisis as a developmental emergency, defend multilateralism, and use NDCs as platforms for cooperative engagement with global partners under the Paris Agreement, Agenda 2063, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
It also urged developed countries to sustain financial, technological, and technical support to help African states implement their NDCs, and for donor institutions to prioritise bankable, community-led projects that can attract private investment.
The communiqué further emphasized the need for gender, youth, and community inclusion at every stage of NDC design and implementation.
Ms Gbemisola Akosa, Executive Director, Center for 21st Century Issues, stressed that although 85 per cent of African countries have incorporated gender in their NDCs, financing for women-focused climate action remains inadequate.
“We must not only put gender equality in our policies but ensure that implementation delivers real results,” she said.
Mr. Iskander Vernoit, Executive Director, IMAL Initiative for Climate and Development, Morocco, highlighted the gaps in climate finance and the need for stronger global accountability.
“African governments must protect their citizens even in the absence of sufficient international finance,” he said,
He called for legal obligations on wealthy nations to fulfill climate finance commitments.
Representing African youth, Mr. Samuel Okorie, Advisory Board Member of the UNFCCC Santiago Network, urged governments to partner with youth enterprises and integrate innovation into national climate action.
“It’s time to stop being afraid of youth businesses — they can drive Africa’s climate solutions,” he said.
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The communiqué concluded with a united call for African countries to “speak with one voice” at COP30, focusing on the Baku to Belém Roadmap, Article 6 and Carbon Markets, and the Global Goal on Adaptation.
The communique added that the webinar was hosted by Prof. Chukwumerije Okereke and attended by over 30 stakeholders from across the continent.
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