No Debt Justice, No Climate Justice
Erasto Magamba, Youth Coordinator in the Diocese of Kampala
I come from Uganda, a country whose current debt burden is 52.4% of its GDP. Uganda, like many countries in the Global South, is highly indebted. These countries excessively exploit their natural resources to clear off debt. Just as I attended United Nations Conference of Youth (COY16), the parliament of Uganda was debating the downgrading of three forest reserves so that houses could be built on this land instead. Climate change affects everyone and doesn’t discriminate whether you are young or old. At the moment, many countries are simply paying lip service to climate justice.
Right now, 48 countries are spending five times more on debt repayment than on mitigating the devastating effects of climate change. Some have no choice but to exploit their natural resources to pay off debts. Developed economies should ponder offsetting the debt from highly indebted countries in exchange for climate change mitigation activities like reforestation. Otherwise, we are doomed. There cannot be climate justice without debt justice!
I think we should make environmental protection an important duty for everyone. Global political leadership should influence the incorporation of climate change into school syllabi, from primary school to university. Religious leaders also have a big role to play in the climate justice agenda - they should at all times remind their congregations of their obligation to protect the environment. Governments should also subsidise alternative energy resources like electricity and gas to offset the use of firewood and charcoal burning in Africa.
Lastly, President Barack Obama said during his speech at COP26, 'Our planet has been wounded by our actions, those actions won’t be healed today, tomorrow or the day after! But they can be healed by degrees. If we start with that spirit and if each of us can fight through occasional frustration, I believe we can secure a better future.'
Let us take his words to heart and begin our struggle for a better future, starting with the issue of debt justice.