1. 🚁 Heli view: Africa has at last engaged in the battle of ideas

Departing from Dubai, one thing at least is clear: Climate action is driven by funding — but no money flows without the right narrative.  

• For decades, Africa was mostly a bystander in the global battle of ideas. That has changed. 

A momentous year: 2023 will be remembered as the time when the continent started owning its climate narrative. 

• Much practical work remains to be done. But this COP was remarkably different from the last, even if still far from satisfactory. 

• How? For the first time, Africa worked to a powerful agenda.  

Paradigm shift: The agenda got significant traction in Dubai. Several debates went Africa's way.

• We document individual instances below, including masses of new funding.

• Forbes magazine wrote: “Africa takes charge of its narrative.”

The right backup: An impressive group of African business leaders (eg James Mwangi of Equity Bank) accompanied the continent's statesmen to Dubai.  

• The bosses showed that African climate partners can be found in the private sector. 

Reality check: Nonetheless, global climate narratives have yet to embrace Africa more broadly as a solution to problems in the northern hemisphere. 

• High-profile debates (eg on fossil fuel) left the continent mostly on the sidelines.

• Africa must work even harder to sit centre stage and capture the world’s imagination.

In sum: The past two weeks were a reasonable start into a new era. 

• Even if most pledges made in Dubai may not result in meaningful emission cuts.

2. How did the continent score at COP in individual categories?

Two weeks ago, we published a bingo card listing the nine parts of Africa’s climate agenda. They had been agreed by national leaders at the Africa Climate Summit and set out in the Nairobi Declaration published on September 6th. 

How much of this has been achieved at COP28? What wins did African negotiators achieve?