NAIROBI, Aug. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Pan African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA), a green lobby based in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, on Sunday launched the climate justice torch (CJT) with the aim of galvanizing local actions geared toward hastening the transition to a low carbon future.
Mithika Mwenda, the executive director of PACJA, said the CJT campaign seeks to rally grassroots communities toward activities that promote green transition in a continent already reeling from a host of climatic shocks.
"The Climate Justice Torch campaign aims to mobilize and galvanize voices of the vulnerable communities while illuminating aspirations of African people who have suffered disproportionately from climate change impacts," Mwenda said in a statement issued in Nairobi.
Launched ahead of the 27th session of the Conference of Parties (COP27) to UN Framework Convention on Climate Change Summit slated for Egypt from Nov. 6-18, the torch campaign will raise the visibility of the plight of African communities on the frontline of climate emergencies like droughts, floods, cyclones, and wildfires.
According to Mwenda, the torch campaign will push for recognition of Africa's special needs and circumstances, loss and damage, and prioritization of adaptation finance to enhance climate resilience in the continent.
Mwenda stressed that local communities have demonstrated resilience and tenacity in the face of the climate crisis, hence the need to place them at the heart of mitigation and adaptation programs.
Harnessing indigenous knowledge and innovations will be prioritized by the torch campaign, to enable African communities to cope with devastating impacts of climate change such as extreme weather events, hunger, and water stress, said Mwenda.
He called upon governments to come up with forward-looking policies and legislation aimed at spurring grassroots investments in climate adaptation and achieving a green, just, and inclusive transition.
Mwenda also said that voices of demographics on the frontline of the climate crisis including smallholder farmers, small and medium-sized enterprises, fisherfolk, pastoralists, women, youth, and hunter-gathers, will be raised by the torch campaign.
Lee White, the Gabonese minister of Water, Forests, the Sea, and Environment, said the launch of the climate justice torch was timely, given the urgency to mobilize Africa's grassroots communities and urge them to undertake actions that could lower carbon emissions and accelerate green growth.
