By Imali Ngusale
Africa stands at the intersection of two profound challenges as the global climate crisis intensifies. On one hand, the continent bears disproportionate vulnerability to climate impacts—from extreme weather events to rising sea levels, while on the other, African-led initiatives to combat these challenges remain critically underfunded, stalling efforts to adapt and mitigate effectively.
Jean Pierre Elong Mbassi, Secretary General of the Union of Cities and Local Governments of Africa (UCGLA), underscored this dire reality during a panel on emerging digital technologies at COP29.
“Adaptation is key in climate change resilience,” stated Mbassi, while highlighting the continent’s financial and technological hurdles.
Mbassi also said, “Africa pays double for what goes into its care,” adding that leveraging technology is essential for adaptation.
This notwithstanding, the majority of proposed adaptation technologies remain foreign, with homegrown African innovations constituting less than 10% of globally recognized solutions. This imbalance raises concerns about the continent’s ability to define its climate future independently.
Mbassi also emphasized the pressing need for transparency in climate finance, calling for systems that ensure accountability.
However, transparency is a little bit farfected.
In a rejoinder, Chris Poullaira, the Chief Technology Officer of Blockchains and Climate Institute outrightly said while explaining the complexities of global governance.
In a rather unorthodox stance, he said,” AI is not necessarily the panacea of climate change,” “If we do not have a robust system that is timely and credible, it will be difficult to address the climate crisis.”
Poullaira believes that the challenges of building prototype technologies for climate change have an unspoken mistrust among stakeholders.
But he is not alone, a group of activists at COP29 also lauded his views stating that climate finance is a hoax and decision-makers have decided to make Africans poorer by deliberately making them pay up for the challenges they already endure. Whether COP 29 will yield any tangible outcomes to aid Africa’s burden will be told over time.