African Climate Negotiators push for health-centred climate action ahead of SB64

By:  Nana Appiah Acquaye

African climate negotiators have renewed calls to place health at the centre of global climate action, warning that climate change is increasingly manifesting as a public health emergency across the continent.

The position was reaffirmed by the Chair of the African Group of Negotiators on Climate Change (AGN), Nana Dr. Antwi-Boasiako Amoah, during a Climate and Health Capacity Building Workshop held in Bonn ahead of the 64th Session of the UNFCCC Subsidiary Bodies (SB64).

The workshop brought together negotiators, technical experts, young climate leaders and representatives from institutions including WHO Africa Regional Office (WHO-AFRO), the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), Amref Health Africa and the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD).

Dr. Amoah stressed that climate change and health outcomes are deeply interconnected in Africa, noting that rising temperatures, floods, droughts, food insecurity, malnutrition, air pollution and shifting disease patterns are placing significant pressure on already stretched health systems.

He highlighted growing evidence that climate-sensitive diseases are expanding into new regions while extreme weather events continue to damage critical health infrastructure, worsening vulnerabilities across the continent.

The workshop, supported by IISD, builds on the launch of the African Negotiators Climate and Health Curriculum developed by Amref Health Africa and introduced in Dar es Salaam last year. Participants noted that since its launch, climate-related health impacts have intensified, underscoring the urgency of integrating health into climate policy frameworks.

Dr. Amoah also pointed to progress in embedding health within the Global Goal on Adaptation (GGA), noting that ongoing discussions under the Baku Adaptation Roadmap and the adoption of Belém Adaptation indicators present an opportunity for Africa to shape global adaptation measurement and financing.

He urged African negotiators to ensure that health indicators under the adaptation framework are context-specific, practical and reflective of Africa’s climate realities, including the disproportionate burden of climate-related health risks on vulnerable communities.

Reaffirming the AGN’s position, Dr. Amoah called for stronger coordination among African negotiators to advance coherent strategies that elevate climate and health as a central pillar of global negotiations.

He emphasized that effective climate action must ultimately be measured by its ability to protect people, stating that health remains the clearest human dimension of the climate crisis.