Advancing an open, high-quality and green China-Africa cooperation

Saliem Fakir , Gao Yang (Kevin)

The logo of the 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Chaoyang District of Beijing, capital of China, September 1, 2024. /Xinhua

As the 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) is convening in Beijing in September, the significance of China-African collaboration takes center stage. The summit presents an opportunity to reflect on the substantial strides made in education, healthcare, energy, and infrastructure across the African continent, largely facilitated by the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The ACF aims to expand the BRI’s role in delivering clean-energy infrastructure, although much work remains.

The BRI’s impact on Africa’s sustainable development

Launched in 2013, the BRI is not merely an ambitious infrastructure program; it is a profound commitment to enhancing global connectivity. In alignment with the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the BRI promotes coordinated economic, social, and eco-environmental development. It aims to address the root causes and obstacles that hinder development and boost the self-driven progress of BRI partner countries.

In Africa, the BRI has catalyzed critical investment in public infrastructure, creating jobs, improving market access, and enhancing living standards. Key projects across the continent include railroads, highways, and energy facilities, transforming previously isolated regions into vibrant economic zones.

For instance, the Mombasa-Nairobi Standard Gauge Railway has significantly reduced transportation costs and travel times, fostering trade and commerce. The Addis Ababa-Djibouti Railway connects landlocked Ethiopia to the port of Djibouti, enabling greater access to international markets.

These developments are essential for Africa’s economic diversification, allowing countries to lessen their dependence on commodity exports and create resilient economies capable of withstanding global market fluctuations and climate risk. The more economically resilient countries become, the better they can protect themselves from climate vulnerability – the core mission of the ACF.

One key area where the BRI needs to play a bigger role is the interlinkages between clean infrastructure investment, green industrial development, and critical minerals – a general intent of the upcoming FOCAC meeting. It is recognized that social and environmental challenges need to be addressed, but host countries also have a responsibility to ensure large-scale projects have public support and accountability.

A 50-megawatt solar farm in Garissa, Kenya, December 13, 2019. /Xinhua

Ecological “concerns” and the green BRI

Critics of the BRI often raise concerns regarding its environmental impact, suggesting that rapid infrastructure development may jeopardize Africa’s delicate ecosystems. However, it’s crucial to analyze who benefits from promoting these narratives.

Many activists and organizations criticizing China’s projects may have underlying geopolitical and economic interests, including protecting their national corporations’ competitiveness in Africa. It’s essential to recognize that China has adopted proactive measures, such as integrating sustainability assessments into project planning. Chinese firms increasingly prioritize “green” development practices, including the use of renewable materials and energy-efficient technologies in construction.

The BRI will increasingly fall under the rubric of the Global Development Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative. China has also championed the idea of an ecological civilization, which fits naturally given Africa’s unique ecologies, biodiversity, and the fact that Africa’s emissions are the lowest in the world.

Last year, the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation took place in Beijing. As one of the flagship outcomes, together with 31 countries, the “Belt and Road” green development partnership initiative was launched to enhance cooperation on combating climate change, jointly promote the implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, strengthen collaboration on ecology and environment as well as green infrastructure, and underscore cooperation in the green energy, green transportation, and green finance sectors.

Climate change and renewable energy deployment

On December 13, 2023, the historic UAE Consensus was delivered at the 28th Conference of Parties (COP28) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, featuring the first global stocktake at its heart, setting out the ambitious actions needed to keep 1.5degrees Celsius within reach. One major push from the consensus is for countries to work together to triple the world’s installed renewable energy generation capacity by 2030.

Africa is endowed with vast renewable energy resources, particularly solar and wind energy, which present remarkable opportunities for sustainable development. Chinese solar, wind and development finance are already tapping into the African energy market. However, Africa’s renewable energy contribution globally is still the lowest and most expensive in terms of kilowatt-hour produced.

To accelerate the energy transition and climate actions in joint efforts, China is actively promoting South-South Cooperation on climate change and has established the Belt and Road Energy Partnership with 32 countries.

Moving towards COP29 and beyond, climate finance will be the key subject for negotiations and the solution to catalyzing collective climate actions. Countries are also developing new strategies and action plans on climate finance for the next round of national determined contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement. However, NDCs cannot be implemented without fair and diverse financing solutions. It is the role of the ACF to support increased investment flows on the continent that are aligned with NDC’s ambition and economic diversification.

In this regard, the ACF is working with Boston University and relevant Chinese institutions to unlock grant and concessional finance for scaling clean-energy solutions on the continent. One such initiative is securing finance from the Green Finance Investment Platform of China for a project preparation facility in Southern Africa. This is part of a broader strategy of helping African countries access new sources of climate finance through our country investment platform work.

We look forward to the outcomes of the forthcoming FOCAC. We call for rapid progress to be made on climate action and for China to work with African countries and their peoples to not only address energy access issues but also to use the investment drive to promote economic diversification.

Saliem Fakir is the executive director of the African Climate Foundation (ACF). Gao Yang (Kevin) serves as special advisor of International Partnership at the ACF, supporting Sino-African cooperation and dialogues on climate and development..

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