The recently signed global
climate agreement has elicited mixed
reactions from around the world by attracting both praise and condemnation
in equal measure. But beyond what different people think about the COP21 Paris
agreement, we as African youths must step up to the expectations of what it
means for us, and the future of our continent.
Within the intergovernmental UNFCCC since 2009, YOUNGO,
the official youth organizations civil society constituency has a ‘Global South’
representative who among others, assists organizing the annual Conference of
Youth, which brings youth from around the world together in order to build
their capacity to participate in climate negotiations.
Through its Article 6 on Education, Training and
Public Awareness, the UNFCCC calls on governments to implement educational and
training programmes on climate change to educate, empower and engage all
stakeholders including young people.
At the Lima COP20 in Peru, Decision 19/CP.20, the Lima
Ministerial Declaration on Education and Awareness-raising, reaffirmed that
youth are one of the key stakeholders to participate and access information and
knowledge both of which are crucial for developing and implementing effective
policies to combat climate change and adapt to its impacts.
Youth have traditionally been underrepresented in
decision-making processes and offered few opportunities to have their voices
heard regarding issues that concern them including climate change. All too
often, there is a lack of genuine participation of young people in responding
to climate change, since programmes are still designed for them, rather than
engaging with them as partners.[1]
Whereas African youth are appreciative of the
establishment of the ClimDev-Africa Youth Platform (CLAYP), they would wish to
see more diverse groups of people benefit from the initiative as opposed to a
few select youth representatives as has been the case during the past year in 2015.
It’s common across the continent to find that the already
developed national policies on climate change insufficiently address the
education and engagement of youth in climate change issues and the importance
of these issues to their present and future lives.
Youth can play a role in informing and educating other
youth, sharing information and building capacity, campaigning, lobbying and
advocacy, engaging in consultations, leading initiatives, and participating in
policy development and decision making.[2]
Through appropriate education, information, resources
and guidance, African governments must adequately support young people and
provide opportunities for them to become informed participants in order to effectively
mobilize youth and prepare current and future generations to be agents of
change. This is in line with Agenda 21, Article 6 of the UNFCCC and the outcome
document of Rio+20 in 2012, ‘The Future We Want’.
Eric
Mwangi Njoroge blogs for the Network of African Youths for Development (NAYD)
on matters concerning climate change. He is currently an Adaptation Policy
Fellow during the ongoing Phase III of the African
Climate Change Fellowship Program (ACCFP) jointly administered by the Institute of Resource Assessment (IRA-UDSM)
of the University of Dar es Salaam
and START
International, Inc. (START). He can
also be reached via email at Climateinfo@nayd.org.
[1] D. Selby and F. Kagawa, ‘Runaway
Climate Change as Challenge to the “Closing Circle” of Education for
Sustainable Development’, 4:1 Journal of Education for Sustainable Development
(2010), 37.
[2] United Nations Department of
Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), The World Youth Report (United Nations
(UN), 2012).
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