By Eric Kawa
Mr Ali Daoud Mohamed, Chair of the African Group of Negotiators on Climate Change,
Special Climate Envoy of the President of the Republic of Kenya visited Moscow, Russia for a series of events aimed at fostering connections between Russia and Africa in the field of climate action.
During the visit Mr Mohamed had official talks with Mr Ruslan Edelgeriyev, Aide to the President of the Russian Federation and Special Presidential Representative on Climate Issues, Mr Alexander Novak, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, Mr Mikhail Bogdanov, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia and Special Representative of the President of the Russian Federation for the Middle East and Africa, Mr Andrey Melnichenko, Chair of the Committee on Climate Policy and Carbon Regulation of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP).
The parties discussed the current state of the international climate agenda and potential approaches to more equitable climate target setting, the outlook for the global carbon market, and the need to confront trade barriers, introduced under the pretext of climate action.
Mr Edelgeriyev highlighted that despite the challenges in global climate negotiation process, Russia remains committed to promoting all Paris Agreement provisions that aim to lower the cost of greenhouse gas emission reductions, including the global carbon market, affordable climate finance and just technology transfer.
In line with that, Mr Novak noted that the transition to a low carbon economy should be fair and gradual, accounting for different national circumstances and development priorities. “Both green and conventional energy can and should coexist and complement each other. Switching away from fossil fuels is not the only way to reduce emissions. A truly fair transition cannot be based on a ban on investments in fossil fuel projects”, Mr Novak said. Following the meeting with Mr Novak, the parties agreed to prepare a joint work plan to enhance cooperation between Russia and the African Union in the field of climate action involving business communities from both sides.
During the visit Mr Mohamed pointed to the fact that the current global approaches to climate policy unjustly benefit some countries, disregarding the needs and concerns of others. “It is noteworthy that the historical contribution of Africa to greenhouse gas emissions is only about 3 per cent of all accumulated anthropogenic emissions. Yet, African countries are under pressure to set more ambitious climate targets and to refrain from using their abundant natural resources”.
He stressed that Western countries are largely responsible for the accumulated amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Currently, the average European still emits much more per person than an African or Latin American. According to Mr Mohamed: “This should be reflected in the countries’ Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) to the Paris Agreement. A fair approach to NDC setting should derive from a fixed global emissions budget divided across all countries based on an equal right for development for all people, i.e. on a per capita basis”. The Russian side welcomed Mr Mohamed’s proposal to update the approach to NDC target setting.
Mr Mohamed also expressed concerns over climate-related trade barriers such as the European Union Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (EU CBAM), noting that such policy tools discriminate against African exporters and create an unfair situation when high-emitting countries demand payments from low-emitting countries.
Mr Melnichenko agreed that the global climate agenda is in crisis, and emphasized that it is more important than ever to advance climate diplomacy and jointly promote equitable approaches to global climate policy. He noted that the interests of Russia and Africa in the field of climate fully converge. “Combining the voices of Africa’s 1.4 billion people with the capabilities of Russian diplomacy, science, and technological advancements could strengthen the push for fairer principles in the international climate agenda”, he said.
Mr Melnichenko also noted that carbon market mechanisms on a global scale are not operational yet, limiting the effectiveness of climate action. “The development of the climate project sector will allow for reducing millions of tonnes of net CO2-eq. emissions per year. Russian developers of climate projects have both willingness and expertise to cooperate with Africa”, Mr Melnichenko added.
The Russian side also presented the interim results of the Russian National Climate Monitoring System aimed at advancing the data on the country’s greenhouse gas fluxes. According to Mr Melnichenko, science should play a key role in shaping and promoting countries’ positions globally: “Our ecosystems absorb twice as much CO2-eq. as previously thought. Russia is proving to be a much ‘cleaner’ country, and this should be leveraged in international climate negotiations”.
Mr Mohamed expressed interest of the African countries to obtain reliable data on emissions and removals on the continent and indicated that this could become one of the flagship areas of cooperation with Russia in the field of climate.
