COP26- Our Urgency of Now to save the Planet and People

Starting 1 November 2021, the world will gather in the bustling city of Glasgow for the Cop26 climate talks. This event will be a make or break for the entire world. It will be an opportunity to save the planet or allow it to continue to spiral down in peril.

The latest climate plans synthesis report called NDCs released by the UNFCCC showed that the net impact of all the NDCs submitted by countries, including 86 new/updated NDCs, will reduce emissions by just 12% in 2030 compared to 45% required the best-case scenario of 1.5C. The latest science from the global leader on climate science, the IPCC, in its 6th Assessment report, concluded that the world is likely to breach the safe 1.5℃ warming threshold in just two decades. Africa, which is already heating up twice as fast as the rest of the globe.

The message is consistent –climate change risk is escalating, and the response to build resilience remains below par. Governments must increase climate ambition both in financing the implementation of the already existing NDCs and ensure the means of implementation, including finance, technology transfer, and building on what is working, becomes our fierce urgency of now. There is no choice for inaction, and all of us have a role to play. We must use our voices to inspire others to take action. Hold our government accountable for inactivity to increase #ClimateAction ambition. We must use our spaces, be it our churches, classrooms, universities, women groups, men groups, youth groups, to inspire each other to take action. It must start happening in our cities, churches, villages, schools, and everywhere.?

As individuals, we must realise we have the urgency to do something, and it starts with us. Engage your communities and start using your heart to discuss important things. Food on the table is not just an environmental issue. The health of your children will be affected by #ClimateChange. Security, economic aspects and everything you can think of are in jeopardy if we don't act now.?Be the one who can start moving the needle and become the pressure point to push action from your community. The youth have become the pressure points, and they are doing what they can to use what they have as they leverage the spirit of Innovative Volunteerism. Getting trapped in despair and anxiety because of inaction will only make us helpless. The most significant antidote to helplessness is action, and that action starts with you and me. We urgently need active and rational action as that is what inspires hope.?As we all move to act and hold our government to take action, the following are some levers to strengthen implementation:

First, prioritise turning NDC commitments into investment tools. While Africa is a leader in NDCs ratification with a 98% rate, over 70% of African countries have not converted their NDCs into investments that demonstrate a clear return on investment. For example, few countries have expressed a costed expectation on finance coming from the private sector. This is just the first natural step to attracting market implementation resources that are more sustainable. Countries should, therefore, clearly elucidate the projected return on investment for individuals or institutions who invests in actions that drive the NDCs priorities of governments.

Second, incentivise youth & the informal sector as critical drivers of NDCs implementation. In Africa, up to 80% of labour is engaged in the informal sector. Over 60% of the population is youthful. The key is how this critical constituency can be tapped to drive NDCs implementation. And for this, targeted fiscal & non-fiscal incentives such as tax holidays for youthful entrepreneurs who engage in actions that implement NDCs will be critical to catalysing a shift of incentives by these critical groups towards NDC areas.

Third, targeted policy incentives, especially fiscal incentives. We have favourable fiscal policies across Africa. For example, we have budgetary policies exempting value-added tax on clean cooking, including sustainable fuel briquettes. Affordable financing for the youth engaged in developing the climate action solutions needed by the informal sector, tax holidays to youth entrepreneurs who establish climate action enterprises to enable them to minimise their tax burden during the formative years of their initiatives.

Fourth is non-policy incentives. Regardless of how timely they may be, policy incentives will accomplish very little if they fall on passionless citizens. This calls for the right mindset- a mindset of discipline, purposeful passion, unborrowed vision, & selflessness. We must never lose sight of the "soft aspects" ts". We owe ourselves the task of doing so to inspire active and rational hope in others to turn climate change challenges into investment opportunities that work for the many.

Not everyone who chased the zebra caught it, but he who caught it chased "it". This African proverb is a timely reminder of what we must all do to take our chances to drive the implementation of the NDCs.

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