2020 provides a unique opportunity for African leaders to simultaneously address the risks of political instability, pressing development needs, and the impacts of climate change. This process clearly can – and must – target social and economic benefits to enhance equity and improve the livelihoods of the poor, writes Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.
What is true of the World Economic Forum is true of the world: To address the world’s most pressing issues, such as poverty and climate change, those who are most impacted must also have a seat at the table, writes Sharan Burrow.
Africa’s transition to a new climate economy is underway in many places. The question is: Will developed countries create a tail-wind or a head-wind?, writes Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.
The tourism industry significantly impacts climate change and will be drastically affected by it. But there is an opportunity for the industry, for tourists and for host communities to benefit from sustainable approaches to tourism, writes Felipe Calderon.
Carbon pricing can command broad political support. But to do so, it needs to be accompanied by other policies and spending that support social and development goals, while at the same time supporting a just transition for workers and communities affected by the imposition of such taxes, writes Helen Mountford.
We are no doubt living in challenging times, with cities so often the focal point of social tensions that are felt well beyond their limits. But cities also offer us so many solutions. For the good of their entire countries today and tomorrow, we need national leaders to seize the new urban opportunity, writes Nick Stern.
The climate crisis does not begin or stop with Africa, but African countries can play a leadership role in seizing the opportunities of a better future. The world's larger economies have a responsibility to unlock this future, for themselves and for others, writes Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.
How can Africa realize economic prosperity without contributing further to climate change? The solution lies in a kind of Green New Deal – a comprehensive strategy for achieving sustainable growth, including through coordinated, large-scale investment in renewable-energy deployment, writes Carlos Lopes.
Invest in cleaning up the hard-to-abate sectors such as cement and steel so that new infrastructure is green, writes Naina Lal Kidwai.
Unless we make a quick and decisive shift to a low-carbon energy system and economy, by 2030 we will pass the point by which we can keep global average temperature rise to well below 2°C, writes Helen Mountford.