By Milliam Murigi
As the 30th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30) unfolds in Belém, Brazil, African civil society organisations (CSOs) are attending the global talks with one loud and unified message: this must be the COP that delivers justice, not just promises.
In a comprehensive position paper released ahead of the negotiations, a coalition of 41 African CSOs outlined a bold, justice-first agenda for the continent.
“Africa contributes the least to global emissions, yet we suffer the most,” the statement reads. “COP30 must be the moment the world stops negotiating our survival and starts delivering justice.”
At the heart of the African civil society agenda is climate finance a persistent source of contention in global climate negotiations. The organisations want the Baku–Belém Roadmap, expected to emerge from COP30, to deliver binding, transparent, and time-bound financial commitments aligned with the principle of Common but Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities (CBDR-RC).
They argue that climate finance should be public, grant-based, and accessible, rather than profit-driven loans that deepen Africa’s debt crisis.
“Climate finance should not push African nations deeper into debt,” said Julius Mbatia, Global Programme Manager at ACT Alliance. “What we need is predictable, grant-based support that strengthens resilience and builds community-led adaptation. This is about justice, not charity.”
The CSOs are also urging negotiators to separate climate finance from traditional aid (ODA), ensuring that funding is new and additional and commensurate with developed nations’ historical responsibility for emissions.
Furthermore, they call for COP30 to recognise the link between climate justice and tax justice by supporting a UN Tax Convention that helps African countries recover resources lost through tax evasion and illicit financial flows.
“You cannot talk about financing climate action while Africa continues to lose billions through unfair global tax systems,” added Jackson Obare, Regional Manager at ForumCiv. “A UN Tax Convention would give developing nations a fair say in global tax governance and ensure resources stay where they are needed most — with the people.”
The CSOs are also demanding that COP30 fast-track the operationalisation of the Loss and Damage Fund the mechanism agreed upon at COP28, to compensate countries suffering irreversible climate impacts.
They want the fund to prioritise grants, not loans, with simplified access procedures that allow affected communities to receive timely and adequate support. They also propose dedicated financing for slow-onset events such as sea-level rise and desertification, which continue to devastate livelihoods across the continent.
“Communities in the Horn of Africa, the Sahel, and coastal regions are losing everything not because of their actions, but because of global inaction,” said Obare. “Loss and damage funding must reach those on the frontlines directly, not get stuck in bureaucratic bottlenecks.”
To strengthen transparency and accountability, the CSOs propose the creation of a loss and damage gap report to track financial and capacity gaps and ensure that pledged resources are delivered.
For Africa, adaptation remains not just a priority but a survival imperative. The continent faces intensifying droughts, floods, and heatwaves that threaten millions of lives and undo decades of development gains.
The CSOs are urging COP30 to establish a post-2025 adaptation finance target and commit developed countries to triple adaptation funding by 2030, sourced from new and additional public funds.
They also back the proposed Baku Adaptation Roadmap (BAR) as a mechanism to guide global and national adaptation actions in the coming decade.
“Africa cannot keep adapting with empty pockets,” said Mbatia. “Without adequate funding and technology transfer, the continent’s adaptation plans will remain paper dreams.”
As the world shifts towards renewable energy, African CSOs are calling for a just and inclusive energy transition that benefits communities rather than corporations. They want COP30 to establish a Belém Action Mechanism (BAM) to coordinate the transition and ensure equitable financing, technology sharing, and capacity building.
The CSOs stress that public finance, not private debt, should drive the transition and that communities must have ownership in decision-making. They are also pushing for clear timelines for phasing out fossil fuels, led by developed countries, alongside investments in decentralised renewable energy systems that expand energy access and create local jobs.
“The transition must be fair and inclusive,” said Obare. “It should empower women, youth, and workers, not exclude them. Renewable energy should light up homes, power schools, and transform livelihoods, not leave people behind.”
On matters nature protection and local communities, the CSOs are demanding that COP30 adopt a global framework to halt deforestation and ensure at least 30 percent of climate and biodiversity finance is channelled directly to indigenous peoples, local communities, and faith-based actors who protect these ecosystems.
They also want recognition of Africa’s Congo Basin as a crucial global carbon sink and stronger support for Africa-led restoration initiatives such as the Great Green Wall and AFR100.
“Our people are the real custodians of nature,” said Mbatia. “Financing must go directly to communities those who protect forests, restore degraded lands, and safeguard biodiversity.”
The coalition also emphasises gender justice and youth inclusion as central pillars of effective climate governance. It urges full implementation of the Enhanced Lima Work Programme on Gender and the Gender Action Plan, ensuring that women especially from rural and marginalised communities have equal access to resources, leadership, and decision-making spaces.
