The Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa, CAPPA, has tasked African journalists on the need to raise the bar in reporting climate change and expose the big con.
CAPPA made this known during a virtual training of journalists across Africa on the Big Con and COP 26.
Akinbode Oluwafemi, Executive Director, CAPPA while giving his welcome remarks, noted that it is imperative that journalists across the continent raise the bar in climate change reporting, stimulate interest and engage the UNFCCC process.
He charged the journalists to tell Africa’s climate change story themselves, particularly exposing the Big Con and call out governments supporting false solutions.
Speaking on the Role of Fossil Fuels Industry in Climate Change, Dr. Nnimmo Bassey, Director, Health of Mother Earth Foundation, lamented about how companies rip communities of their virtues with government’s support.
He noted that, “the companies raping Africa to death should be brought to book, they don’t add much to the local economy, we are only left with assaulted community and unfortunately, our government supports them.”
On his part, Philip Jakpor, Director of Programmes, CAPPA, who spoke on ‘Introduction to Climate Reporting’ explained that, “we have discovered that there is a missing link in climate reporting and it is important for journalists to understand the elements of effective reporting of climate change.”
He charged journalists that, “to report climate change effectively, journalists must be able to give adequate background to stories, proper identification of drivers of climate change, conventional and industry language in reporting climate change, differentiated impacts of climate change and call to action for respective stakeholders.”
Also speaking at the training, Rachael Rose Jackson, Director of Climate Research and Policy, CAPPA shared the big polluters’ greenwashing called ‘NET Zero’, and how it will not address climate change.
According to Jackson, “Net Zero’ climate policy, is an agenda to delay, deceive and deny the reality of damages being done to Africa by the Big Polluters.” The Big Polluters cut across the fossil fuel and energy, aviation, technology, retail, finance and agriculture industries.
Other speakers at the training were; Ndivile Mokoena, Gender CC SA- Women for Climate Justice South Africa; Hellen Neima, Regional Director, CAPPA Climate Campaign; and Ogunlade Olamide Martins, Programme Manager, CAPPA. The training was anchored by Aderonke Ige, Associate Director, CAPPA. The training had in attendance journalists from Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, Togo, Uganda and Zimbabwe.