A Professor at the Centre for Peace and Strategic Studies, University of Ilorin, Abosede Babatunde, has urged African countries to prioritise a shift to green energy as a core strategy to confront the climate crisis. Speaking at a three-day conference on climate adaptation and conflict dynamics held at the University of Ghana, she warned that the continent remains highly vulnerable due to weak technological capacity, poor financing and limited access to global climate funds.
Prof Babatunde noted that many resource-rich African countries face added risks because transnational corporations often operate with minimal adherence to environmental regulations. She stressed the need for global commitment to the 1.5°C warming target and called for a decisive move away from fossil fuels towards renewable energy.
She said Africa must strengthen local climate adaptation measures, arguing that climate impacts and related conflicts reinforce each other and deepen community fragility. She urged academics, civil society actors and policymakers to develop context-driven solutions that draw on indigenous knowledge and improve resilience.
Also at the conference, Associate Professor Shittu Raji of Unilorin presented a paper on local resilience to farmer–herder conflicts in Nigeria. The event drew experts from Africa, Europe, North America and Australia.
