We need urgent phasing out of fossil fuels

I was keenly following the 28^th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) summit that happened last year between November and December in the United Arab Emirates city of Dubai.

It marked a pivotal moment with the agreement of over 200 nations to establish a fund aimed at assisting countries affected by the impacts of global warming, a landmark decision that was hailed as historic.

The summit left us for the first time to agree to transition away from fossil fuels because the failure to agree a phase out ignores the science and sends a signal to polluters that governments may tolerate fossil fuels forever, even as millions of people around the world demand climate action now.

Unfortunately, despite urgent warnings from scientists and growing demands from millions of people, the much-needed promise to phase out fossil fuels didn’t make it into the agreement. According to the Global Stocktake (GST), a report examining countries’ efforts to reduce planet warming emissions since the Paris Agreement was signed in 2015. In essence, it’s a global “report card” providing governments with guidance on where they need to improve, the report indicates that results are pretty poor in ensuring a climate action effort.

The report made it clear that countries are not on track to prevent 1.5C of warming. It is absurd that the summit produced no concrete recommendations on fossil fuels, signaling to the thousands of fossil fuel industry lobbyists present that their interests will be prioritized over those suffering the worst effects of the climate crisis

The agreement sends a signal to those thousands of lobbyists who gathered at COP that there is a long and profitable future for their destructive businesses, regardless of what the science tells us. Serious climate action means no loopholes, no reliance on unproven technology and an immediate phaseout, with massive financial support for the transition from the richest countries and from big polluters.

It is evident that when it comes to the climate crisis, Africa is at the eye of the storm, with Uganda being in the top ten most vulnerable to climate change. Africa is vulnerable because it is exposed to damaging climate risks including extreme droughts, flooding and storms. Comparatively to the Global North, there is lower capacity for adaptability, making it further vulnerable to high rates of poverty, financial and technological constraints as a result of reliance on agriculture.

Africa has one thing in common with the rest of the world, the certainty that rising temperatures will exacerbate existing problems and vulnerabilities. Like any other countries, Uganda has experienced the wrath of climate change affecting the livelihoods of the people through destroying their properties, losing lives and others.

Uganda’s economy and the livelihood of her people are highly dependent on natural resources, which are prone to climate change impacts. The country experiences increased frequency and severity of extreme weather events manifested in more erratic rainfalls and prolonged dry seasons due to climate variability and change.

However, despite such effects, the country continues to prioritize oil and gas activities which will increase the risks of overshooting vital climate goals. These projects result into worsened climate change impacts, human and environmental health.

Therefore, the government’s investment in the oil and gas sector at a time when an energy transition is ongoing and even the European oil and gas majors are reducing investment in the sector will also mean that Uganda will be stuck with infrastructure that provides less value than the investment made in the infrastructure. Ugandans could also be forced to continue depending on oil and gas, which has grave negative impacts on the environment, climate change efforts, health and human rights.

Vivian Lunkuse works at Center for Conservation and Ecoenergy Initiative (CCEI)