The China-Africa 2023 Summit on Sustainable Investment kicked off in Kenya's capital Nairobi on Thursday, with delegates renewing a call for greater collaboration to ensure a just and green transition.
Co-organized by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), the Alliance of Chinese Business in Africa for Social Responsibility (ACBASR) and the Financial Center for South-South Cooperation, the summit was attended by senior policymakers, diplomats, investors and green entrepreneurs.
During the day-long summit, representatives of green start-ups from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Uganda presented to Chinese investors in the hope of securing business partnerships.
Marco Lambertini, WWF special envoy, said the summit offered Africa and China a platform to share knowledge and best practices needed to promote ecological management and green growth.
While acknowledging that the climate crisis and biodiversity loss were taking a heavier toll on Africa, Lambertini said that capital and green technologies from China can be harnessed to reverse course. "China's investments in Africa can be a great support to Africa's holistic green development if led by prioritization of environmental protection and biodiversity conservation," he said.
Zhang Yijun, minister counselor of the Chinese Embassy in Kenya, said that China is committed to green development in Africa amid blossoming trade and economic ties between the two sides.
Delegates attending the summit called for enhanced cooperation to boost the green energy transition through robust financing, skills development and technology adoption.
James Kakeeto, the regional energy officer at WWF Africa, said that bringing together Chinese investors, African entrepreneurs and green innovators was a milestone in efforts to decarbonize the continent already grappling with climate emergencies.
"We hope that on this platform, we can realize a vision of infrastructure that is more diverse and inclusive, greener and lower in carbon emissions, and more resilient to climate change," Kakeeto remarked. He observed that Chinese-funded renewable energy projects in Africa will promote nature-positive development in the continent, besides unleashing green jobs for the youth.