At the invitation of the Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance and several partners1, African civil society actors, academia, representatives of women and youth movements met at Sunbird Hotel in Lilongwe, Malawi, from 25th to 29th April 2022 for an “African Conference on Loss and Damage and Climate Finance”.

The conference aimed to consolidate African voices on Loss and Damage and Climate Finance ahead of SBSTA, AMCEN and COP27. It focused specifically on:

• Deriving a common understanding of the extent of loss and damages, the scope of past climate-related damage as correlated by professionals, and model anticipated damages,
• Solidifying and strengthening the African Civil Society position on climate finance, especially for Loss and Damage.

Over four days, participants discussed the worsening impacts of climate change, the regrettable lack of sufficient commitment from global political leaders, and slow progress in climate negotiations, especially on loss and damage and climate finance agenda items. After thoroughly considering the different views in the room and online, participants issued the following statement:

Deeply concerned by the continued push by the global north for scientific attribution and quantification of loss and damage and in total disregard of the science of climate change and evidence on loss and damage is already well-established.

Cognisant of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 1.50C Report of 2018, “residual risks” will rise as temperatures increase and that the report ranks Africa as the most vulnerable continent, with foreseeable catastrophes like those seen in Malawi, South Africa, Mozambique, and Chad, amongst other African nations.

As a departure from the proposals/submissions from the Association for Latin America and the Caribbean (AILAC)states to finance loss and damage with the Adaptation Fund.

Disturbed by the increasing push of market mechanisms and other false solutions to financing loss and damage to the detriment of rights-based approaches and the realization of climate justice.

Welcoming the Glasgow Pact on Loss and Damage but further uncertain about the time needed to translate it into action as extreme events devastate livelihoods and economies in Africa.

Reflecting and premising our hope on the upcoming UNFCCC Subsidiary Bodies Intercession, AMCEN and COP 27 convenings to provide unique policy spaces for key decisions on loss and damage and climate finance.

Therefore, demand:

On loss and damage:

1. Demand urgent intervention and frank negotiations on loss and damage, given the evidence already provided by the AR6 report of the IPCC, majorly on the African Continent.

2. Strongly denounce market-based mechanisms and other false solutions propagated as solutions for loss and damage. We further caution all stakeholders – and especially the global north and the private sector – against any form of thought on applying market mechanisms on loss and damage response.

3. Demand urgent operationalization of the Santiago Network on Loss and Damage (SNLD), considering the magnitude of loss and damage in Africa no later than COP27.

4. Demand that parties put a clear distinction between loss and damage and disaster risk reduction as provided in the evidence of AR6.

5. Demand the establishment of a special finance facility for loss and damage response in line with article 8 of the Paris Agreement. These finances for loss and damage should be predictable in quality and quality and should be separate from the Adaptation Fund and the GCF.

6. Require as a basic minimum that loss and damage become a permanent priority agenda in climate negotiation processes right from SBSTAs to COPs.

7. Compel a great commitment from parties in following the direction already set by the Scottish government at COP26 in financing loss and damage not later than COP27.

8. Call parties to be alive to the differentiated impacts of losses and damages to men, women, youth and the disabled and act following the established evidence.

9. Call upon parties to consider the role and capacity of the Civil Society Organizations in loss and damage response and fast track mechanisms for easing access to climate finance to CSOs.

On Climate Finance:

1. Demand that parties MUST provide new and additional short and long-term finance, based on the needs of the peoples of the Global South, balanced between mitigation and adaptation (with an immediate step of fixing the broken commitment of delivering the inadequate $100 billion in public finance by 2020).

2. Strongly call on parties to settle on the definition of Climate finance no later than COP27 as provided in Article 9 of the Paris Agreement without further procrastination.

3. Demand that GCF, the Adaptation Fund, and other fund mechanisms conform to evidence on gender and accessibility.

4. Sturdily call on the GCF and the GCF board to urgently convene and redress the observer state of CSOs in the instrument alongside addressing accessibility and transparency concerns.

5. We emphasize the pivotal and leadership role that African governments should play in consolidating African voices and experiences on loss and damage and strong demand for predictable and verifiable new and additional climate finance support