Two weeks away from the African Climate Summit to be held in Kenya from September 4-6, 2023, attention is turning to the concerns of NGOs. In an open letter addressed to President Ruto, 300 organizations denounce the influence of the American consulting firm McKinsey on the agenda of the meeting. According to these initiatives, the summit would be diverted from African priorities in terms of climate in favor of the interests of Western countries.
The initial objective of the summit was to define a new vision of the fight against climate change taking into account the realities of Africa. However, the NGO signatories of the letter believe that McKinsey does not represent the interests of the African continent, but rather those of Western companies and governments. They underline in particular the place given to the establishment of a carbon credit market in the agenda of the summit.
For some, this carbon credit market could support the growth of carbon credit production in Africa while creating jobs. But for the signatories of the letter, it is a false solution that gives Western companies the right to pollute. They believe that key issues for Africa, such as phasing out fossil fuels and investing in renewable energy, are pushed to the back burner.
Faced with these concerns, the authors of the letter ask President Ruto to take matters into his own hands and entrust a group of African experts with the task of reshaping the agenda of the summit. They thus encourage a more balanced consideration of African priorities in the fight against climate change.
It remains to be seen how the Kenyan government will react to this open letter and whether any adjustments will be made to the summit agenda. Ultimately, the goal must be to ensure that Africa’s concerns and priorities are fully represented at this important international gathering