Boosting Africa’s green development
The continent needs more collaboration with China to improve the ecology amid climate risks
Africa is facing challenges such as climate change, threats to biodiversity, intensifying desertification, and increasing frequency of extreme weather events.
According to a study by the International Monetary Fund, rising global temperatures could lead to a reduction in the GDP of African countries by 2.25 percent to 12.12 percent, depending on the extent of climate change. The World Bank says that African countries hit by extreme weather conditions could see their poverty rates jump from 64 percent to 79 percent.
Additionally, Africa is grappling with issues such as soil erosion, salinization and declining soil fertility, with around 20 percent of its land area, or 6.6 million square kilometers, undergoing degradation. Glacier melting has also become a challenge, with famous high-altitude ice caps in Zambia and Zimbabwe shrinking.
Environmental degradation not only directly harms Africa’s natural resources and biodiversity but also leads to reduced food production, increased regional conflicts, the spread of infectious diseases and terrorism. Some African countries are also facing electricity shortages, with the International Energy Agency saying in a report released in June 2022 that there has been a rise of 25 million people without access to electricity in Africa since 2021.
Given the urgent need for green development in
Africa, green cooperation has become a crucial part of China-Africa relations. Under the framework of the Global Development Initiative, China and African countries have engaged in extensive cooperation to enhance Africa’s capacity for green development.
In addressing climate change, China and
African countries have strengthened cooperation in areas such as meteorological monitoring, disaster prevention and reduction, water resource utilization, desertification control, land degradation, and drought prevention.
China has initiated joint projects with several African countries to address climate change, including the construction of low-carbon demonstration zones and climate adaptation demonstration zones.
In terms of energy structure adjustments, there is a diverse level of development and energy needs among African countries. China is offering its assistance to the nations in developing clean energy sources, supporting them in enhancing their self-development capabilities and the stable supply of power to remote areas.
According to International Energy Agency data, China undertook power generation projects in 24 subSaharan African countries in 2019, with 49 projects expected to be completed by 2024, mostly renewable energy projects.
In terms of economic and trade cooperation, the list of outcomes released during the Global Development High-Level Dialogue, hosted by China in June 2022, included 32 items for China-Africa green cooperation. China-Africa cooperation is now expanding in the field of green finance.
On Feb 9, 2022, the Johannesburg branch of the Bank of China successfully completed a $300 million green bond issuance, the first green bond issued by a Chinese financial institution in Africa.
There is still ample room for the development of China-Africa green cooperation.
First, both sides can refine their green concepts and jointly pursue sustainable global development. It is essential to promote the construction of mechanisms and platforms and formulate a road map for cooperation and development.
Second, the two sides should develop green technology and actively integrate themselves into the global innovation network. China and Africa should concentrate their efforts on conducting cooperation in a more precise manner in alignment with the needs of African nations and China’s technology strengths.
Leveraging digital technology advantages, both sides can explore new models of cooperation. It is important to build an informationsharing platform, develop a catalog for demand and supply in the cooperation process and digitize green technology cooperation projects to ensure that supply can match demand.
Third, it is important to spur the development of green economies to optimize the international market. China and Africa should stimulate the vitality of green finance and accelerate the allocation of global resources in their green cooperation. Beijing can initiate a carbon management system through platforms such as the International Platform on Sustainable Finance and the Sustainable Banking Network.
The nation can also collaborate with African countries to jointly formulate unified standards for defining green financial products. The two sides can fully leverage the effects from demonstration zones, constructing and expanding typical cooperative projects such as green industrial parks. The goal is to promote the reform of infrastructure, address challenges facing African countries in sustainable development, and enable African countries to adopt green standards.
Looking to the future, China and Africa should draw on their experiences and wisdom, jointly address the challenges of green development, jointly implement the Global Development Initiative, and promote the building of a global community with a shared future.