The Lead Coordinators of the African Group of Negotiators (AGN) met in Libreville, Gabon from 1 to 3 March 2020. The meeting was also attended by the chief negotiators of the United Kingdom and special envoy from the Office of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Mr. Boris JOHNSON, as well as representatives from the African Development Bank (AfDB), the African Union Commission (AUC) and the Pan-African Alliance for Climate Justice (PACJA). In addition the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA) Chair Ambassador Tosi Mpanu Mpanu presented his views for the preparation of SB52 and COP26.
This meeting aimed to define the African road map for Climate Action in preparation of the upcoming intermediate sessions of the UNFCCC negotiations SB52 in Bonn, Germany, as well as for the 26th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 26), which will be held in Glasgow, United Kingdom.
“Africa left COP 25 with a feeling of disappointment. This is why, it is more than essential that Africa unite via a network of experts but also that all African countries develop longterm strategies sector by sector as disaggregated as they are, in order to reach the 1.5 ° C drop in temperature,” said the permanent secretary of the National Climate Council, also chairman of the AGN, Mr. Tanguy Gahouma-Bekale.
The chief negotiator of the United Kingdom, Mr. Archie Young, recognized the relevance of this meeting in Libreville while indicating that he accepted the concerns of the AGN. “It was very important for us to be in Gabon to hear the perspectives of the African side, especially at a time when COP 26 will show the world that the fight against global warming is a universal fight. At the end of this work, I am reassured to have seen the creation of a single voice that will defend Africa, understand its expressed common interests,”.
