COP30: African, Latin American labour leaders demand fair climate finance

…Reject ‘Green Colonialism’, Call for People-Centred Transition

By Victor Ahiuma-Young

As the world prepares for COP30, trade union leaders from Africa and Latin America have joined forces to demand a fair and equitable global climate transition — one that prioritizes people over profits.

In a joint statement released ahead of the summit, the Trade Union Confederation of the Americas (TUCA) and the African Regional Organisation of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC-Africa) urged world leaders to ensure genuine climate justice through fair financing, debt relief, and meaningful technology transfer.

The statement, signed by Rafael Freire, General Secretary of TUCA, and Joel Odigie, General Secretary of ITUC-Africa, warned that the global shift toward a low-carbon economy must not replicate historical inequalities or impose new forms of exploitation.

Rejecting what they described as patterns of “green colonialism,” the unions said developing nations are being pressured to abandon fossil fuels without receiving the promised financial and technological support from industrialized countries.

“A just transition must be fair, equitable, and inclusive for all. Our regions are not victims of climate change — we are agents of change and custodians of the world’s biodiversity and resources,” the statement read.

The unions outlined key demands, including:

Fair and accessible climate finance based on grants rather than debt-inducing loans.

Simplified access to funding for vulnerable nations.

Debt justice, including debt-for-climate swaps and climate disaster clauses.

Reform of the global financial architecture to create fiscal space for green investments.

Technology transfer and local capacity building, enabling African and Latin American countries to develop and manufacture their own green technologies instead of relying on costly imports.

They also called for the protection of indigenous knowledge and biodiversity, inclusive social dialogue in designing transition pathways, and strong social protection systems to ensure that no worker or community is left behind.

With COP30 set to hold in Brazil in 2025, the statement marks a significant step in strengthening Global South solidarity for climate equity.

“We cannot and will not bear a disproportionate burden for a crisis we did not create,” the labour leaders declared. “Let us build a transition that leads to a fairer, more equitable, and more prosperous world for all.”

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