With the just concluded Africa Climate Summit, women are standing in one voice in calling for gender inclusivity while addressing the climate crisis.
In a panel discussion around gender justice, Director of Climate Justice at the Open Society Foundations Yamide Dagnet said the focus should not only be on talks about 'a just transition but just transitions.'
"Such a holistic approach will foster more ownership of the narrative and in reimaging what those transitions mean and how the benefits can be shared equitably," she said.
Additionally, the panel noted that while African women lived experiences as the people largely responsible for farming and cooking, it noted that Africa’s climate crisis is more than giving women cookstoves.
"We have to acknowledge that the climate crisis is a systemic structural crisis. The systemic challenges will not be resolved by focusing on macro-level solutions but rather we need to reimagine the role of the state and reject false and temporary solutions,” Movement Led Approaches to Gender and Climate Justice in Africa Senior Advisor Ruth Nyambura said.
"The majority of Africans already live in energy-poor situations, with women disproportionately impacted," she added.
United Nations Independent Expert on Foreign Debt Attiya Waris noted that the current financial architectures, challenge the types of debt governments enter into and the negative consequences on the marginalised.
"Ultimately, marginalised populations - youth and women’s narratives - need to be linked to power, to strengthen movement building, transnational solidarity and inform progressive policies," Waris said.
