The Christian community of Africa has urged African leaders to ensure greater transparency in the management of climate finance.
The European Union on Wednesday, September 6, announced a $150 billion fund towards Africa’s climate action.
The European Union said it is backing the continent with the assistance to create jobs with a special investment plan on adapting to climate change, an additional stripe to a region that has perennially been accused of exploiting Africa for centuries.
European Union (EU) President, Ursula Von Der Leyen said the European bloc was upending its dealings with Africa through the £150 billion ($156 billion) Global Gateway Investment Plan for Africa.
Similarly, the African Development Bank also allocated an amount of 25 billion dollars towards the course.
But speaking on behalf of the ecumenical community in Africa on the final day of the 2023 Africa Climate Summit, Reverend Dr Lesmore said such funds must be used judiciously to generate much interest among stakeholders in dealing with the devastating effects of climate change on the continent.
“We continue to pray and act rightly for the common good of all while calling for greater transparency in climate finance management, it is greatly going to be beneficial if a mechanism like what was used during the global fund to combat HIV, Malaria and TB, a country coordinating mechanism is very important and if we can institute that, all the stakeholders within the country will find space in climate financing that will lead to greater adaptation and resilience for our people.”
For decades, the EU members extracted oil, gas and other natural resources in Africa to power their industries. Now the bloc itself wants to rid itself of dirty energy and has been pushing poor Africans to follow suit. This change in policy has proven controversial as some African countries want to enjoy the lately discovered resources before transiting.
EU’s Global Gateway targets investments ranging from hydropower plants in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Burundi, Rwanda and Tanzania. It also includes the €1 billion ($1.1 billion) Initiative on Climate Adaptation and Resilience in Africa, which the EU announced at COP27, the UN climate conference in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt in November last year.
