Strengthening Trade Union Capacity on Climate Change for Better Engagement and Advocacy at National Level

Keywords : South Africa Climate Change And Environment Reports

Southern Africa Edition – 6 – 8 July 2016

ITUC-Africa together with the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES), organized a Sub Regional Training Workshop on Climate Change. The Southern Africa workshop, held in Johannesburg from 6 – 8 July 2016 was a follow up to ITUC-Africa/FES Regional workshop organized in May, this year and the first of a series of sub regional workshops scheduled to take place in the course of 2016.

The three days’ workshop brought together approximately twenty five participants comprising members of the Africa Trade Union Climate Change Network, Researchers from the Africa Labor Research Network, and Representatives of the Southern Africa Trade Union Coordinating Council (SATUCC) as well as a few political leaders. Participants extensively discussed questions around the Economics of Climate Change, the Southern Africa policy framework on Climate Change, the International and Regional Governance Processes of Climate Change, Mitigation and Adaptation Efforts in Southern Africa and the Effects of Climate Change on Employment among other topics.

Dr. Kamal Moustapha Gueye of the ILO Green Jobs Department also provided an overview of the Green Economy Concept and shed highlights on the Paris Agreement and its implications for Africans. Practical initiatives were also shared by Femi Oye - the CEO of Green Energy Biofuels - on ongoing green projects in Nigeria including biofuel for cooking stoves, green cold rooms for rural farmers, green transportation, and recycled plastic waste into building blocks among other initiatives by the organization.

The workshop also presented the opportunity for participants to commence a discussion around a common African trade union position to COP 22 which is scheduled to take place in Marrakesh in November 2016. Although it was agreed that the impact of trade union participation in COPs over the years has been relatively weak, a renewed commitment to ensuring an increase in African Trade Union representation and active participation was reached.

The workshop ended with participants tasking SATUCC to deepen commitment to work around climate change and FES to continue extending support to trade union organizations on important issues such as Climate Change.

Special thanks to the FES Trade Union Competence Centre Sub-Sahara Africa - TUCC for the support towards the implementation of this activity.

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