By Ruth Tene Natsa, Abuja
The Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA) has described the promise of “loss and damage” funding for vulnerable countries hit hard by climate disasters as just talks that have been made before.
AFSA General Coordinator and panel expert with IPES-Food Dr. Million Belay, said: “It was very disturbing to see a large contingent of corporate lobbyists influencing the process while small-scale farmers were shut and drowned out from COP27. Farmers demanded recognition for diverse, resilient farming, agroecology, and climate finance, but they leave with very little.”
He stated that the African civil society was hugely disappointed that the powerful, rich countries were backtracking on previous commitments to the 1.5C target and to reducing the use of fossil fuels, even rebranding fossil gas as a ‘low emission energy source’.
“As Africa is warming at twice the global rate, this leaves the continent on the front line of the onslaught of the climate crisis – one of several crises created outside its shores,” he said
The Alliance decried that the rich countries of the Global North had failed to fulfill their 2016 100 billion dollar-a-year adaptation funding pledge, even as they decried being ignored at COP27 climate talks
According to AFSA “As the dust settles in Sharm El-Sheikh, Africa has little reason to rejoice. Africa and the Global South can take some hope from the small gains made at COP27. At the last minute, negotiators agreed to provide “loss and damage” funding for vulnerable countries hit hard by climate disasters. But we have heard these promises before. The rich countries of the Global North have failed to fulfill their 2016 100 billion dollar-a-year adaptation funding pledge.
In a statement to www.earthnewsng.com, signed by the Groups Communication’s officer, Kirubel Teshome it stated that “AFSA members had attended COP27 with a clear demand to put agroecology at the centre of agricultural and adaptation discussions, place farmers’ needs at the centre of adaptation, and focus on new, accessible, and predictable adaptation finance. But the international climate negotiation community once again sidelined the voices of Africa’s small-scale farmers at COP27 in Egypt. Farmers’ calls for a shift to agroecology as the obvious choice for low-cost climate action and resilience went unheard.
AFSA’s Program Coordinator and focal person for the climate and agroecology working group Bridget Mugambe, said, “Africa is feeling the effects of the climate emergency every day, with rising temperatures, droughts, and floods already hitting small-scale farmers and women hard.
“To sustain our livelihoods and feed communities, we are forced to adapt – yet we are receiving negligible funds from the international community. Small-scale farmers across Africa are calling on the international community to recognize the potential of agroecology and invest in African-led solutions to the climate crisis.”
Executive Director of Young Volunteers for the Environment, Sena Alouka, opined that African small-scale farmers were deeply disappointed that while the COP27 decision on agriculture strengthened their understanding of the massive role of food and farming in greenhouse gas emissions, it failed to develop any concrete implementation actions.
“Instead of the urgent transformative action required to address the climate crisis, we are left with vague commitments and promises to invest in ‘climate-smart’ food systems in Africa. We will never solve the climate crisis with the same mindset that caused it. We require a just transition away from high-emitting industrial agriculture, corporate food system monopolies, and false climate solutions, and toward agroecology.”
