Africa has to pursue COP26 deal or perish

African delegates to COP27, scheduled for Egypt next week, are now rolling their sleeves in readiness to hold a candid conversation around climate change and its impacts on the continent.

However, more questions about the implementation of COP26 agreements are yet to be answered.

Africa is helplessly reeling from the detrimental effects of climate change yet its contribution to pollution is minimal.

The COP26 agreements appended in Glasgow, Scotland, include but are not limited to the reduction of carbon emissions by 45 per cent; moving away from the use of fossil fuels such as coal; delivering on climate finance to aid developing countries, and helping the developing countries to adapt to climate change and enhancement of resilience.

These would perfectly reduce the impact of climate change and, most important, tamper its severity.

Sadly, the implementation of these agreements has hit a brick wall. Cutting emissions is a long-term plan that would dramatically reverse global warming and disruption of weather patterns.

The largest contributors to carbon emissions are European countries, North America and Asian nations, which account for up to 70 per cent of greenhouse gases.

These are developed countries which have stubbornly refused to cut their toxic emissions. Countries like Germany, the UK, the US and China use millions of tonnes of coal every year yet their plan to reduce it seems to be failing by the day as they continue to use of coal due to the surging energy crisis.

COP27 is a godsend. It’s the platform on which African nations must square it off boldly and unblinkingly to voice their grievances.

Climate change is ravaging the livelihoods of Africans, leaving them impoverished and helpless. My argument here is that COP26 agreements must be implemented before the delegates debate anything else in Egypt.

Looking at the daily media reports, it’s clear that the climate disaster has taken a toll on the continent.

This includes the drying up of rivers, depletion of pasture, dying of livestock, extreme hunger and food insecurity, malnutrition and death of wildlife, among others, particularly due to drought.

More than four million Kenyans are in dire need of relief food and water. This has been the trend for a long time but little has been done to contain the situation, the main challenge being a lack of finances.

Delivering climate finance was one of the agreements in Glasgow, which required the developed countries to give up to $100 billion (Sh12 trillion) to aid the developing countries to mitigate the climate crisis.

But this hasn’t been fully implemented yet livelihoods have been drastically affected.

It is Africa’s responsibility to push for the implementation of the COP26 deal to save its people from severe climatic conditions.

Kenya, for instance, must be at the forefront in fighting for these agreements as more of its population continues dying of hunger. Unless we hold the developed countries responsible, our continent will be thrown into oblivion.

Mr Korir is a communication and journalism student at Kenya Methodist University (KeMU). [email protected].