Luke Pato, recently retired Anglican Bishop of Namibia, said that an oil project planned by the Canadian firm Reconnaissance Energy Africa (ReconAfrica) is part of a "new wave of colonialism." Pato believes that COP27 delegates should propose "a resolution that would tell companies that are drilling outside of their own countries not to do so."
The project is aimed at production of fossil fuels in the Namibia-Botswana border region, which contains several protected natural sites, including a World Heritage site. Pato believes that the project endangesrs the region's nature, which, according to him, is "a sin, and a serious one."
In its turn, the Namibian government, which co-operates with ReconAfrica, has commented on the matter, saying that exploring and developing the country's natural resources for the good of its population is the state's responsibility and that "reneging on that responsibility will be reckless."
Representatives of ReconAfrica said the firm is working with the Namibian government "to make sure that not only are we in line with what is expected from us to protect the environment, especially the water, but also to make sure that we go the extra mile."
Pipelines and Double Standards
Some observers point out that Western policies towards energy projects in Africa are complex and full of contradictions, with Western countries often following double standards, tying energy initiatives to the green agenda. African leaders view the climate crisis issue as a matter of injustice, with the continent suffering disproportionately from the impacts of climate change, while contributing just two or three percent to global greenhouse gas emissions. However, as many Africans believe, the West tends to demand that Africa fix a problem it didn’t create.
The EU exerted pressure on Uganda and Tanzania to stop the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) project due to climate concerns. The bloc's policies have been deemed hypocritical after reports of decisions, made by European countries facing the effects of the global energy crisis, to return to fossil fuel-based power plants.
According to Yoweri Museveni, Uganda's president, European countries have promoted the unacceptability of fossil fuel investment in Africa, imposing a moratorium on it. He underlined that now, however, investment is said to be possible for Europeans if the energy products are exported to the EU. Projects like the proposed Nigeria-Morocco gas pipeline are said to potentially be beneficial for Europe's own energy security.
John Kerry, the Biden administration’s climate envoy, spoke out against investing in long-term gas projects in Africa due to their climate impact and said that "Mother Nature does not measure where the emissions come from." At the same time, since signing the Paris Climate Agreement in 2015 to limit greenhouse gas emissions, the US government has invested more than $9 billion in fossil fuel projects in Africa.