Rafiq Wagiet11 November 2024 | 18:38

What's at stake for Africa's climate agenda at COP29 summit?

COP29 in Baku is being billed as a pivotal moment in the race to net-zero emissions.

What's at stake for Africa's climate agenda at COP29 summit?

Stephen Grootes speaks to Msizi Khoza, managing executive for ESG at Absa Corporate & Investment Banking.

Listen to the interview in the audio player below. 

World leaders are gathering Baku, Azerbaijan this week for the COP29 summit, with the aim of agreeing a new climate finance target to assist developing nations in their fight against climate change.

At the 2009 climate summit, wealthier nations committed to a sum of $100 billion a year by 2020 to help developing nations adapt to global warming, and to decarbonise its economies. 

According to Msizi Khoza, managing executive for ESG at Absa Corporate & Investment Banking, Africa contributes the least to climate change, but is the most exposed to its effects.

Speaking to Stephen Grootes on The Money Show, Khoza says Africa would require $277 billion a year until 2030 to deal with the effects of global warming. 

"It's really about developed nations committing to greater levels of climate investment"

- Msizi Khoza, managing executive for ESG at Absa Corporate & Investment Banking

"African nations and governments should be pursuing and pushing very hard for a much more ambitious goal and target, but at the same time we ought to be quite realistic because I think there is a very real possibility that despite this conference being billed as the 'finance COP', it may not live up to expectations."

- Msizi Khoza, managing executive for ESG at Absa Corporate & Investment Banking

"The current climate summit is arguably the most important in the fight for a more climate just world."

- Msizi Khoza, managing executive for ESG at Absa Corporate & Investment Banking

Scroll to the top of the article to listen to the full interview.