COP31: Africa makes progress on adoption of key supplementary priorities on agenda

COP31 must mark the definitive transition from negotiated promises to tangible financial delivery, the African Group of Negotiators (AGN) has urged world leaders in a decisive call as the 31st Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP31) opened in Antalya on Monday.

Speaking on behalf of the continent at the opening plenary in Antalya, AGN Chair, Nana Dr Antwi-Boasiako Amoah, emphasised that Africa’s ability to fulfil its climate commitments rests entirely on the immediate mobilisation of scaled-up, predictable climate finance.

Aligning the African bloc with the Group of 77 and China, Dr Amoah declared that an implementation-focused summit must be a summit that delivers on finance, setting a firm tone for the two-week negotiations hosted by Türkiye, with Australia presiding over negotiations.

Opening the intervention with congratulations to the incoming Turkish Presidency and gratitude to Australia and the outgoing Brazilian Presidency from Belém, the AGN Chair articulated the stark paradox facing the African continent. Africa contributes the least to global greenhouse gas emissions yet suffers disproportionately from climate-induced disruptions.

While African nations have submitted highly ambitious Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and National Adaptation Plans (NAPs), Dr. Amoah highlighted that the vast majority of this ambition remains locked behind unfulfilled financial pledges. He stressed that African countries cannot carry out climate mitigation and adaptation strategies without the promised means of implementation, transforming climate finance from a secondary discussion item into the essential prerequisite for all global progress in Antalya.

"Africa comes to Antalya with one clear message: implementation depends on means of implementation. Our continent contributes the least to this crisis and is among the most exposed to its impacts. African countries have put forward ambitious NDCs and adaptation plans, but most of that ambition depends on finance that has not yet arrived," said Nana Amoah.

Adoption of Africa’s priorities in official agenda

To ensure that core financial and structural priorities were formally integrated into the COP31 proceedings, the African Group pushed for the inclusion of three key supplementary agenda items. Following intense Head of Delegation negotiations that concluded in the early hours of the opening morning, Dr Amoah announced that consensus had been reached to adopt these priorities into the official agenda.

These are to: operationalise and track progress toward tripling adaptation finance flows to address growing vulnerability across developing states; evaluate the impact of unilateral trade-related climate measures on developing economies, protecting African industrialisation under Article 3.5 of the Convention; and conduct a formal assessment of funding necessary and available for the Green Climate Fund ahead of its upcoming third replenishment.

The demand for a dedicated dialogue on trade and climate change represents a pivotal issue for African economies. As unilateral trade regulations and carbon border adjustments proliferate globally, Dr Amoah warned that such measures threaten to shift the financial burden of the green transition onto developing nations, undermining local industrial development in direct contradiction to Article 3.5 of the UNFCCC Convention.

Additionally, the AGN Chair underscored the necessity of evaluating the financial requirements of the Green Climate Fund (GCF). As the GCF prepares for its third replenishment cycle, the African Group called on the COP to fulfil existing commitments by assessing the exact scale of resources needed to meet developing countries' actual climate requirements.

The position outlined by the AGN Chair reflects a unified stance across the Global South, backed by key negotiating coalitions including the Arab Group, the Like-Minded Developing Countries (LMDC), the Independent Association of Latin America and the Caribbean (AILAC), and the broader G77 and China alliance chaired by Uruguay.

This collective push comes against the backdrop of alarming contractions in global climate finance. Contextual statements delivered on behalf of the G77 and China highlighted that the Global Environment Facility’s ninth replenishment (GEF-9) suffered a 27 percent decline compared to GEF-8, marking its lowest funding level in 16 years.

Concurrently, major developed nations have announced reductions that cut their signed GCF contributions for 2024–2027 by half. These declines coincide with massive shortfalls in loss and damage funding, where funding requests exceed available resources by over eightfold.

Operationalising equity and industrial growth

For the African Group, the ultimate measure of success at COP31 will be an outcome that balances mitigation ambition with robust financial delivery, equity, and common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities (CBDR-RC).

Dr Amoah reiterated that low-carbon and climate-resilient transitions must foster equitable, shared prosperity, providing African nations with the necessary policy space to industrialise, expand energy access, and eradicate poverty. By securing adoption of its agenda items through collaborative Head of Delegation negotiations, the African Group has positioned financial accountability and trade equity at the core of the Antalya summit.

As committee sessions and ministerial roundtables begin across the Antalya Expo Centre, the AGN Chair’s call serves as a focal point for developing nations demanding that international climate governance shift permanently from pledge-making to guaranteed delivery.