Abstract
This paper examines issues around climate change and COVID-19 as two major contemporary global challenges facing Africa. Although Africa is a marginal contributor to climate change in terms of its carbon footprint, the continent as a whole is more impacted by the climate crisis due to its low adaptive capacity and a combination of other vulnerabilities. The COVID-19 pandemic spared no part of the world not only with regard to adjusting to its ‘New Normal’ as a containment strategy, but also concerning its multi-sectoral implications across human societies. For Africa in particular, COVID-19 and its ‘New Normal’ portends both reinforcement and an exacerbation of the existing sustainable development efforts. Relying on complex interdependence and relevant secondary sources, this paper argues that climate change and COVID-19 combine as twin emergencies of global concern and, incidentally, the biggest pain point for sustainable development in Africa. The paper concludes that efforts aimed at addressing these two challenges should be given top priority and mainstreamed across different sectors. It suggests the need for the development of a coherent climate and COVID-19 action at both national and regional levels, with much focus on crafting an African solution to the phenomena, among other recommendations.
Presenters
Oluwole Idowu OlutolaPostdoctoral Research Fellow, SARChI African Diplomacy and Foreign Policy, University of Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
2021 Special Focus: Responding to Climate Change as an Emergency
KEYWORDS
Climate Change; COVID-19; New Normal; Complex Interdependence; Africa
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