Discussions at the ongoing 26th Conference of Parties (COP) summit gears towards ensuring a sustainable carbon-free economy. Several African countries like South Africa and The Gambia have signed agreements with the US government, UK and EU to ensure clean energy transitions and improve electricity access in receiving countries.
Would signing deals be enough to ensure a just energy transition for a continent like Africa, which is one of the most impacted by climate change while having the least access to electricity?
The Paris Agreement reached in COP21 pledged to provide $100bn yearly to support climate action in developing countries. Six years down the line, it is apparent that the goals have not been met. As a result, the continent is still not well suited to ward off the deadly impacts of climate change nor significantly contribute to climate action. (No African country is likely to meet their Nationally Determined Contributions)
Lessons from the Paris Agreement
Analysing the commitments made by developed countries towards climate finance, there was no express agreement on what measure each developed country would contribute and how this contribution could be measured; instead, there were country-country financing. Drawing lessons from COP21, agreements reached at COP26 should have a monitoring mechanism to indicate what each nation has contributed and by how much.
A second flaw was the absence of actionable plans or steps countries would take to achieve their commitment.
How can Africa position itself to benefit from COP26?
African countries can position themselves to ensure that financial commitments from COP26 yield adequate results by creating an enabling environment. This can be achieved through strengthening political and economic systems, adopting the right policies and creating a monitoring mechanism to ensure that finances received for climate action are adequately utilised.