by Lionesses of Africa Operations Department

With so much going on in the world in the form of Covid shutdowns in China; continued Supply Chain issues; higher prices pushed even higher thanks to a war in what is clearly the world’s and if the massive import needs are anything to go by - Africa’s largest bread-basket otherwise known as The Ukraine; and of course the push-pull within Central Banks over raising interest rates to counter inflation or keeping low to keep recessions at bay (see our warnings on Stagflation here and here); one could be forgiven in our rush to lower electricity pricing by firing up coal fired power stations, for forgetting that the Globe is still suffering.

by Lionesses of Africa Operations Department

At the time of writing, COP26 is into its last days and sadly it is not looking good for any meaningful results. The current feeling is that (non-binding) commitments so far given are driving us to an increase of 2.6 degrees, significantly higher than the 1.5 required to keep the globe relatively stable. The above quote tragically says it all. It is from Philip Davis, the Prime Minister of the Bahamas, one of the many countries on the battle front of Climate Change, as he arrived home disappointed but sadly not surprised by the lack of courage in his fellow leaders. "I invited them to be brave, to be courageous and act…” But as he added: “They don't seem to have any teeth to them.” (here)

by Lionesses of Africa Operations Department

…and so said Mark Carney the ex Bank of England Governor, now the UN’s special envoy on climate action and finance (here), and indeed he is right. To save the world; to ensure people continue to have homes, jobs and a future; to allow for a world where crops are not constantly facing drought one day and then hit by flood the next; to ensure that forests continue to provide habitats and local (and global) climate ecosystems - this all requires long, hard work from us all. Just to put it into further context, successive years of extreme weather events have plunged Madagascar into what WFP officials say is the world’s first climate-induced famine. Five years of consecutive drought compounded by sandstorms, as well as cyclones, an invasion of locusts and growing insecurity have created what World Food Program officials call the perfect storm. There is no magical green switch.