• Nonstate actors have adopted the “Cotonou Declaration” at the Climate Chance Africa 2025 summit.
• The summit featured renewable energy commitments as well as a road map for integrating adaptation as a crucial step in addressing climate change.
• Benin is leading the way on climate resilience by anticipating and addressing the challenges posed by climate change.

COTONOU — Days before the COP30 climate summit kicked off this week in Belém, Brazil, a gathering of “nonstate actors” at the 6th Climate Chance Africa 2025 Summit in Benin adopted a declaration emphasizing the essential role of renewable energy in sustainable development and climate adaptation.

Participants at the summit, held in Cotonou on Oct. 27 and 28, called on the international community to leverage renewable energy as a tool for building climate resilience, preserving biodiversity, and achieving equitable development.

The Cotonou Declaration, which follows from the Addis Ababa Declaration by heads of state in September, states that renewables are a key tool for climate adaptation, capable of securing energy access for vulnerable communities, strengthening food security, and improving public health.

The declaration denounces the decline in official development assistance and calls on wealthy countries to maintain public investment in the Global South, particularly for climate projects. It proposes reinvesting a portion of carbon market revenues in climate-positive projects in Africa that respect the rights of local communities.

The statement says public funds should be used as guarantees to attract private financing, particularly from within Africa, and to reduce borrowing costs that hinder renewable energy projects. Initiatives such as the Africa Climate Innovation Compact and the Accelerated Partnership for Renewables in Africa (APRA) are welcomed, but their success depends on greater inclusion of nonstate actors and accessible financial mechanisms for community-based microprojects.

Participants at the Climate Chance Africa 2025 Summit in Cotonou, Benin, are calling on the international community to center adaptation in efforts to address climate change. Image courtesy of Inès Diallo/Climate Chance Association.

Luc Gnacadja, vice president of Climate Chance, a global association of local governments, businesses and civil society organizations, opened the summit by citing Beninese President Patrice Talon: “Energy is the lifeblood of the economy.” To pave the way for prosperity, this lifeblood must be clean and renewable, particularly in its production and distribution methods, he said. It must center resilience and equity, as well as ensure biodiversity is protected.

The Cotonou Declaration notes that renewable energies also promote the empowerment of young people and women, through the creation of decent jobs and community participation. For Gnacadja, these energy sources are “not just for climate mitigation. They are the heart of adaptation. They ensure vital service continuity (health, water, education, security) and strengthen our community resilience to climate shocks.”

Endorsing the declaration, nonstate experts say there’s a need for integrated policies involving communities, businesses and civil society, as well as appropriate funding to accelerate their implementation.

Inauguration of the Illoulofin photovoltaic solar power plant in Benin. Image by the Presidency of the Republic of Benin via Flickr (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0).

Biodiversity: Is sustainable biomass a solution?

The Cotonou Declaration also calls for increased research into sustainable value chains that can be supported by reforestation programs and social and environmental guarantees. It proposes the creation of a pan-African platform to share best practices and strengthen cooperation. The widespread adoption of improved cookstoves, accompanied by awareness campaigns and microfinance, are urgently needed to reduce wood consumption and preserve ecosystems, it says.

Nonstate actors emphasized that sustainable biomass management is a major issue. Fuelwood, primarily used for cooking, can be a carbon-neutral renewable resource if managed sustainably. However, they noted that overexploitation threatens biodiversity, exacerbates desertification, and worsens climate risks such as flooding.

The French Development Agency in Benin said the climate and biodiversity conservation challenges facing Africa show how the continent can lead the way on climate solutions. In Africa, “energy innovations and sustainable agricultural practices, local knowledge, and engaged youth show that a resilient, low-carbon, and equitable future is possible, and already underway,” it said.

It cited Benin as a country “implementing the solutions Africa needs … the country has placed climate, resilience, and biodiversity at the heart of its national sustainable development strategy.”

Group photo of participants at the Climate Chance Africa 2025 Summit. Image by Modeste Dossou.

Climate resilience a top priority

According to experts and stakeholders at the Climate Chance summit, mini-grids and micro-generation can address the needs of both rural and urban communities, particularly in informal settlements, where access to electricity, water and other renewable infrastructure is crucial.

Local authorities, mobilized through initiatives such as the Covenant of Mayors, must be supported by accessible climate finance and better communication with national governments, participants said. Factoring energy into sustainable urban planning is essential to improving resilience in the most vulnerable communities, they added.

At this level, Climate Chance president Ronan Dantec, also a French senator, said “energy is a foundation for development,” and renewable energies must serve as a compass for adapting to climate change.

He called for an alliance of West African coastal cities to make renewable energy a central tool for climate change adaptation, as well as strengthened cooperation between Europe and Africa on adaptation issues and faster renewable energy deployment, to tackle Africa’s increasing CO2 emissions.

“We understand how important this cooperation between Europe and Africa is. Our destinies are linked, more by our shared future than by our history,” Dantec said.

Benin’s minister of decentralisation and local authorities, Raphael Akotègnon, said Africa’s path to sustainable development relies on three essential and powerful pillars: “Clean energy to fuel our ambitions, energy capture to protect our territories, and biodiversity to conserve our natural heritage.”

According to Akotègnon, Benin “understands the unique challenges facing Africa. Since 2016, Benin has been the architect of an exemplary climate policy that uplifts small-scale solutions. We have increased our clean energy project commitments. In 2017, we launched a €47 million [$54 million] solar project to provide electricity to 50,000 homes through four power plants. This initiative illustrates our commitment to rapidly increasing the share of solar power in our energy mix.”

The minister added that “Africa is not just a victim of climate change. We are also the solution if we can enhance our regional and continental policies and potential, and strengthen our resilience to climate change.”

Banner image: Morocco’s Noor-Ouarzazate Solar power complex. Image by Michael Taylor/IRENA via Flickr (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0).

This story was first published here on Oct. 29, 2025.

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