In a powerful critique of global climate policy, a legal expert, Olasupo Shasore, SAN, has asserted that Africa’s transition to a sustainable and cleaner energy future “must be guided by justice, equity, and accountability,” warning that the continent cannot sacrifice development or dignity in its decarbonisation efforts.
In a paper, titled ‘Climate Change: Developments Rights in a Just Transition to Decarbonisation’, based on the imperative of integrating “EcoSoc (Economic and Social) rights” into climate action, Shasore argues that poorly designed or externally imposed “net zero” policies threaten to worsen harms by displacing communities, intensifying food insecurity, and eroding human rights.
The Partner, Africa Law Practice NG & Co, who is also a member of the Africa Climate Change Movement: Carbon Market Institute *and Association of International Energy Negotiators (AIEN)*, stresses that Africa’s real challenge is achieving a “just transition” that is both clean and fair.
Shasore lays bare the paradox of Africa’s climate predicament, noting that while the continent contributes “less than four per cent of global carbon emissions,” it bears the heaviest burden of the consequences. He highlights the staggering statistics of climate inaction, quoting that “162 million tons of man-made global warming pollutions” are emitted annually, and “8.7 million people die every day to pollution and climate-related disasters.”
He insists that to avoid repeating the “exploitative, extractive models of industrialised nations,” action is required from all sectors: Governments must define clear policy objectives; the private sector must adopt responsible practices; financial institutions must link funding to social and environmental outcomes; and communities must be “meaningfully involved” in shaping their future.
The paper provides a comprehensive history of how Africa established the legal foundation for a rights-based approach to the environment.
Shasore notes that after independence, environmental concerns often took a backseat to reconstruction, but the droughts and famines of the 1970s made it clear that “a polluted environment undermines the very right to life and development.”
The African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (1981) marked the turning point, enshrining the right to a “general satisfactory environment conducive to development.”
Africa later influenced the global conversation by championing the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities at the 1992 Rio Earth Summit. By the early 2000s, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, through Resolution 153, recognised climate change as a direct human rights issue.
Shasore is further critical of the slow pace of progress, stating that climate inaction has turned Africa’s environmental crisis into a “profound human and development rights emergency.” He cites devastating examples, including prolonged droughts in East Africa leaving over 22 million people food-insecure and the shrinking of the Lake Chad Basin as a symbol of how environmental degradation fuels insecurity and violent conflict.
The paper argues that Africa’s “development paradox”—rich in resources, yet poor in access—is exacerbated by global policies that demand that the continent decarbonise at the same pace as industrialised economies without recognising historical injustices.
He calls the restriction of development finance while limiting access to cleaner alternatives a form of “climate colonialism,” which denies Africa the same developmental pathways once used by the West.
Focusing on Nigeria, Shasore notes that as a signatory to the UNFCCC and the Paris Agreement, the country pledged to cut emissions by 20% unconditionally and 47% conditionally by 2030. While the Climate Change Act (2021) was a progressive step, he notes it regrettably “did not enshrine binding targets” or include the country’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
This omission creates difficulty in establishing clear and legally binding emission targets, which is vital for providing certainty to investors. Furthermore, Shasorecriticises Nigerian courts’ “track record of dismissing NGO’s from enforcing climate-related issues,” due to a narrow interpretation of legal interest (locus standi). This is an approach he calls “outdated and lacking in understanding of our global responsibility to the earth.”
To move forward, the legal expert urges Africa to: implement human and development rights due diligence throughout the value chain; ensure meaningful consultation and participation of affected communities; insist on international collaboration and investment in sustainable development; and take leadership in an astute Decarbonisation Legal framework that respects international obligations while being sensitive to development rights.
Shasore concludes with a powerful final statement: “Decarbonisation is not just a climate issue – it is a human development rights concern and we cannot afford indifference or delay.
