• CS Tuya said the summit will build bridges with Global North, not be a blame game
• It will also push for funds after previous pledges by rich nations went unfulfilled
Image: HANDOUT
The government is planning to use the upcoming Africa Climate Summit as a platform to consolidate and outline region's ambitious green growth agenda and solicit for funds.
Environment CS Soipan Tuya on Monday said Kenya, like other African countries, will spell out measures aimed at addressing the impact of climate change.
"It is for the first time that Africa looks at the Climate Change Development nexus," Tuya said.
She was speaking in Nairobi during the launch of the website that will be used to register those attending the summit.
Tuya said the summit, which will be held from September 4 to 6 in Nairobi, will interrogate debt geometric progression and its effects on the war against the impacts of climate change.
She said it is the first time in the history of climate change that a continent anywhere in the world has come together to discuss climate change.
The CS said Africa will be looking at the debt geometric progression and its effects on climate change interventions, including adaptation and mitigation.
Tuya said the region will be bringing to the world its resources, which include the vast untapped arable agricultural land, its critical minerals, its renewable energy potential as well as its carbon sinks.
"It is not a summit of blame games of North versus South," she said.
"It is not a summit of who has emitted the most greenhouse gases or who continues to emit the most.
"It is a summit of Africa’s resources versus the capital of the rest of the world, and how those two can be synergised to fight climate change."
Tuya said a Nairobi Africa Leaders Declaration will be arrived at, which proposes a new global financial architecture for climate change.
It will make a proposal on the reform of multilateral development banks with regards to how they deal with Africa’s debt.
Here, decisions on Africa’s resources that would promote green growth and a low carbon development pathway will be pronounced, as well as unified Africa’s position to climate talks, also called COP 28.
African countries have been unhappy with unfulfilled promises made by developed nations that are yet to be fulfilled.
For instance, developed nations in 2010 made a massive pledge at the United Nations climate summit in Copenhagen.
They promised to channel $100 billion (Sh10.1 trillion) a year to less wealthy nations by 2020 to help them adapt to climate change and mitigate the further rise in temperature.
The funds were to trickle in up to 2025.
The promise has not been fulfilled despite the fact that long-term finance is a key pillar of the Paris Agreement and crucial to global efforts to tackle the climate crisis.
The funds promised were to help turn the world into a zero-carbon, climate-resilient future.
The Paris Agreement makes it clear that developed countries will continue to provide and mobilise finance to support developing countries.
Under the agreement, governments agreed to balance public funding between adaptation and mitigation, and agreed to significantly increase support for adaptation before 2020.
And to ensure there is transparency, countries have committed to improving reporting on finance, with everyone providing information about finance provided or received at an appropriate time.
Despite the promises, not much has been done despite the fact that several conferences have since been held.
Many other promises have been made by developed countries but have not been fulfilled.
President William Ruto has also been vocal about the "unfair financial systems favouring the rich countries".
Conservation Alliance of Kenya chairperson Lucy Waruinge said a consolidated and strategic approach is needed to confront the impact of climate change and take charge of Africa's destiny.
She called for a "brotherly approach" going forward.
Waruinge said the impacts of climate change affect Africa the most, yet the region is contributing less greenhouse gas emissions.
She said more resources are needed to go towards adapting to the impacts of climate change for communities to cope.
She cited the need to restore degraded landscapes, noting that the ongoing efforts are "scattered and not in adequate scale".
Waruinge said with prolonged impacts of climate change, the productivity of various landscapes is compromised.
The CAK chair called for affordable technologies to be transferred to African countries.
Waruinge said most people use wood as source of fuel.
This impacts their health, yet Africa has abundant renewable energy.
Waruinge said with affordable technology transfer, renewables such as solar provide massive opportunities for African countries.