South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa has explained the reason why African countries must not be treated like beggars, as if they are asking for charity, emphasizing that the industrialisation and economic development of the Global North was achieved at the expense of the Global South.
Ramaphosa writes on Monday, while giving the nation update on how several world leaders including him gathered in Paris, France last week for a two-day global summit on new financing development and climate action in developing economies.
The President stressed that Global development financing, if properly directed and provided on significant scale, can make a huge difference to the lives of people living in countries like South Africa.
He said this is the reason why South Africa and many other countries have maintained that industrialised countries that have contributed most to greenhouse gas emissions have a responsibility to fund actions that less industrialised countries need to take to protect their people from climate change.
Ramaphosa said further that, “As South Africa, we argued for a fundamental overhaul of the international financial institutions that are responsible for supporting development across the world.
“These bodies, which include World Bank and International Monetary Fund, should be restructured to be more inclusive and responsive. They should provide funding in a way that does not increase the debt burden of countries that are already struggling to service their debt.
“We said that the international community must appreciate the scale of the challenge and make sure that sufficient funds are available. As a start, industrialised countries need to meet their existing commitments, such as mobilising $100 billion yearly for climate action in developing economies.
“Yet, even as this goal is achieved, much more money will be needed to ensure an effective response to climate change.
“South Africa’s own Just Energy Transition Investment Plan, which was released year, estimates that our country alone would need around $98 billion over the next five years to enable a just transition towards a low-carbon economy”, he added.
The President noted that with improved funding for South Africa’s just energy transition, the Goverment will be able to invest substantially in strengthening the electricity grid and new renewable energy generation.
Which Ramaphosa said it will make a significant contribution to ending load shedding and securing a reliable and affordable supply of electricity. “This will, in turn, promote economic growth, make our exports more competitive and create employment.
Adding that, “This funding will also enable us to develop new industries, such as electric vehicles and green hydrogen, which will increase our industrial output and create jobs for the economy of the future.
“Through such funding, we can increase our investment in infrastructure, expanding the capacity of our economy and reducing the costs for emerging businesses.
“There are immediate challenges that we are addressing as a country. We are working to accelerate the implementation of our Energy Action Plan and Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan so that we can end load shedding, grow the economy and create jobs.
“At the same, we need to continue to assert the needs and interests of developing economies in these international forums, so that we can raise the funds that are required to achieve a just transition and advance our developmental objectives.
“This is important not only for people in South Africa, but for people throughout the Global South. In summarising outcomes of Summit, French President Emmanuel Macron said: “More than ever, international solidarity and transfers from the richest countries to the most vulnerable ones are essential to shape a fairer world.”