African negotiators and civil society groups have stated that the continent's move away from fossil fuels should not harm its development. This comes after a roadmap led by Brazil was shared at COP31 in Antalya, Turkey.
Nana Antwi-Boasiako Amoah, the chair of the African Group of Negotiators (AGN), told reporters in Antalya that Africa must make the transition. But it must be a fair one, with the necessary finance and technology to make it happen.
"African countries have put forward ambitious NDCs and adaptation plans, but most of that ambition depends on finance that has not yet arrived," he said.
Mr Antwi-Boasiako stated before the summit that Africa cannot let its natural resources be stranded when they are needed for development, according to PREMIUM TIMES.
Mithika Mwenda, executive director of the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA), spoke at a high-level discussion on the roadmap. He argued that the transition should focus on what it brings to energy access, economic change, and sustainable development, not just on how much fossil fuel infrastructure is retired.
Mr Mwenda also said that developed nations should take the lead in reducing fossil fuel dependence. This is because of their historical role in emissions and their greater financial and technical abilities, as stated by PACJA.
"The roadmap should recognize that Africa’s energy transition must support broader economic changes and must address the structural challenges that stop African countries from pushing for an ambitious and development-friendly energy transition," he said.
PACJA made similar points in a position paper presented by Mr Mwenda at the summit. "Africa supports mitigation ambition aligned with science and the Paris Agreement, but ambition must be fair, funded, technology-enabled, and compatible with development," the paper stated. "Africa cannot be expected to decarbonize without the means to do so."
The group urged governments at COP31 to consider energy access as a climate goal. The International Energy Agency reported that 655 million people around the world lack electricity, with over 560 million of them in sub-Saharan Africa.
Brazil's COP30 presidency released the Roadmap on Transitioning Away from Fossil Fuels on November 3. This document serves as a voluntary guide for energy systems to shift away from coal, oil, and gas.
The 182-page roadmap was presented in Antalya on Tuesday and cannot be negotiated. It invites countries to draft national plans for clean energy systems by 2028.
Nigeria supported the roadmap, joining countries like India, Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and Australia. A Nigerian representative at the launch emphasized that each country has a different starting point.
Omotenioye Majekodunmi, director-general of Nigeria’s National Council on Climate Change (NCCC), outlined Nigeria’s conditions for the transition during Nigeria Day at the Nigerian pavilion in Antalya on Wednesday.
"A just transition must be fair and determined by each country, adequately funded, and responsive to the development needs of emerging economies," Ms Majekodunmi said.
She pointed out that Nigeria came to COP31 to form partnerships that could turn its priorities into action. "For Nigeria, climate implementation must mean economic opportunity," she added.
According to the NCCC, Nigeria's climate plan estimates that it will need about $337 billion to meet its goals from 2026 to 2035. In 2021 and 2022, Nigeria spent about $2.5 billion a year on climate action from both local and international sources, as per data from Climate Policy Initiative.
On Wednesday, UN secretary-general António Guterres suggested a climate justice compact to help developing countries transition away from fossil fuels while also protecting those already affected by climate change.
Mr Guterres asked for the roadmap to be included in the next global stocktake, which reviews progress under the Paris Agreement in 2028. Saudi Arabia and other producers are likely to oppose this.
The AGN is pushing for a target to triple adaptation finance to be prioritized in the cover decision, the political text adopted at the end of the summit on Thursday. The group lost its attempt on Monday for separate agenda items on this target and on trade.
Mr Antwi-Boasiako told a press conference on Tuesday that the increase needs proper structures and a clear timeline. He spoke at the opening plenary on Monday on behalf of the continent, stating that about two-thirds of the climate finance reported by wealthy countries came as loans.
"The transition cannot be called 'just' if low- and middle-income countries must mortgage their futures in the process," he said.
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