Page 15 - Issue 3 2023

VIEWS AND OPINION

about a third of its oil, according to Climate Change defines a just transition requires a degree of acceptance of
Bloomberg. The region is finding its as, “greening the economy in a way further investment in ‘brown’ activities.
renewables are nowhere near enough that is as fair and inclusive as possible To do otherwise would amount to
to sustain populations’ demands for the to everyone concerned, creating decent denying Africa its right to sustainable
electricity and fuel needed to power work opportunities and leaving no one development. It would be unjust for
their economy. behind”. global capital pools to enforce a total or
Africa needs to set its own path in In this context, while Africa must immediate ban on further transitional
the energy transition, with a diverse join the global drive towards limiting projects in Africa which currently
source of energy that for some time greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, its contributes only 3,8% of GHGs.
will include both coal and gas, while own just transition towards a low- Africa cannot afford to accept
opening up the renewables market as carbon economy must be done in a perpetual under-developed by
fast as possible. Compare Germany and manner that recognises and addresses foregoing all carbon-based fuel
Uganda. According to the World Bank, the deep energy deficit across African investment opportunities in step
GDP per capita in Germany was US$46 economies, where less than 50% of the with the developed world. This
208 in 2020, while for Uganda it was a population have even a rudimentary would be a massive social sacrifice to
miserly $822. African countries such as access to electricity. Transitioning away the continent. Both developed and
Uganda – and many others - still have from non-renewable energy will in Africa developing nations need to transition
a long way to go to catch up with the necessarily be a measured process. to something better at their own pace
developed nations of the world. The World Bank has argued that – and international financiers should
The UN Framework Convention on Africa’s medium-term development support Africa’s just energy transition.

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