The COP26 negotiations over policies to combat the global problem of climate change have highlighted the great need for global cooperation toward a green transition. Indeed, the recently released Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) delivers its starkest warning yet about climate change. The overarching takeaway from the climate accounting exercise is that limiting human-induced global warming requires limiting cumulative CO2 emissions to at least net zero by 2050. The Paris Agreement of 2015, with an ambitious target of keeping global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius, has a conservative budget of 500 billion more metric tons of CO2 to be emitted to achieve the target. However, at the current rates of industrial emissions, it would take about 15 years to exhaust this budget. World leaders, including those from Africa, have a pressing task in reaching that goal. The burning question they face is: What is Africa’s role and what are the policy priorities for accelerating Africa’s green growth transition?

Given Africa’s relatively low emissions intensity when compared with the rest of the world (Figure 1), some have argued from a climate justice perspective that Africa should not be involved with the cleaning-up process, but that rich countries responsible for over 2,400 billion tons of carbon dioxide emitted since the start of the industrial revolution should be fully responsible for cleaning up the mess. The problem, however, is that because Africa faces a disproportionate burden from the repercussions of climate change, it is in its best interest to actively engage with world leaders on the subject. Africa’s position in the climate discussions should, nevertheless, be based on the principle of common but differentiated responsibility that delivers a win-win for the developing and developed worlds.

Read the full article about climate accountability by Chuku Chuku and Victor Ajayi at Brookings.