Outrage as African leaders seek to push for fossil fuel investment at COP27

A proposal by African leaders to increase investment in fossil fuels has caused an uproar among climate activists.

Lobbyists warned that Africa was in danger of locking the continent into fossil fuels for decades to come, with leaders considering a new position that would prioritize gas and nuclear over cleaner, cheaper, renewables.

...Mohamed Adow, Director of Power Shift Africa, said: “Africa is blessed with an abundance of wind, solar and other clean renewable energies.  African leaders should be maximizing this potential and harnessing the abundant wind and sun which will help boost energy access and tackle climate change.  What Africa does not need is to be shackled with expensive fossil fuel infrastructure which will be obsolete in a few years as the climate crisis worsens.

“It would be a shameful betrayal of African people, already on the front line of the climate crisis, if African leaders use this November’s COP27 climate summit on African soil to lock Africa into a fossil fuel based future. Africa does not need the dirty energy of the past, it needs forward looking leadership that can take advantage of the clean energy of the present and future.”