US spent 13 times more on fossil fuels than renewables in Africa since Paris Deal

Just days away from the United Nations climate summit in Egypt, The Guardian on Monday highlighted how the U.S. government is pouring billions into African fossil fuel projects while making relatively limited investments in renewables.

Using Oil Change International’s Public Finance for Energy Database, the newspaper found that since the 2015 Paris agreement, U.S. funding for fossil fuel development in Africa has soared, despite global goals to limit planet-heating emissions.

For fiscal years 2016-21, the U.S. spent $13 billion on fossil fuel projects globally, compared with $4 billion on renewable energy and $1 billion on other projects. Two-thirds of fossil fuel spending, or $9 billion, went to projects in Africa. Just $682 million went to renewables there—meaning the U.S. spent 13 times more on polluting projects across the continent.

Leading up to the COP27 summit in Sharm El-Sheikh, African campaigners and leaders have stressed not only the need for loss and damage funding from wealthy nations that have largely created the climate emergency, but also greater investments in renewables.

As Kenyan President William Ruto argued earlier this month, the continent has “immense potential for renewable energy, and this abundance of wind and solar energy can power the development of Africa.”

However, the data shows that rather than promoting clean energy development across Africa, the U.S. government has instead focused on producing fossil fuels—and not even to aid Africans. As Youba Sokona, a climate scientist from Mali who is a vice chair of the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, told The Guardian, “The U.S. isn’t investing for the interest of Africans, it’s investing for the interests of the U.S.”

Last year, climate campaigners cautiously welcomed U.S. President Joe Biden’s plan to cut off federal support for fossil fuel projects abroad while warning of the policy’s shortcomings.

“The loopholes for ‘strategic’ projects, and the lack of action at home, leave big gaps,” Fossil Free Media director Jamie Henn said at the time. “It’s time to end government support for all fossil fuels everywhere.”

Climate campaigners remain critical of the administration, especially in light of The Guardian‘s findings.

The reporting and final preparations for COP27 come as climate scientists and other experts continue to warn of the need to rapidly transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy at a global scale.

Originally published at Commondreams.org.