By Thami Dickson<\/p>\n
In five days\u2019 time, the inaugural Africa Matters Summit will get underway at Wits Business School (WBS) in Parktown, Johannesburg. Policymakers, financiers, civil society leaders, business executives, and climate experts will gather for what promises to be a defining conversation on Africa\u2019s climate future.<\/p>\n
The planning is done. The programme is locked in. Quite simply, it\u2019s all systems go.<\/p>\n
Why Africa Matters, and Why Now?<\/strong><\/p>\n Africa contributes less than 4% of global greenhouse gas emissions, yet it carries a disproportionately heavy burden of climate change. Across the continent, communities are grappling with extreme weather, food insecurity, strained infrastructure, and growing threats to livelihoods. Despite this reality, climate finance reaching Africa remains insufficient, fragmented, and often trapped behind complicated access conditions. This is the gap that the Africa Matters Summit aims to confront head-on. Why the global climate finance system continues to fall short for Africa? Perhaps more importantly, through this platform we must challenge the continent to assert greater agency in shaping its own recovery. Rather than waiting on delayed pledges or conditional generosity from wealthier nations, the summit asks a harder but more urgent question: what can Africa do now, using its own resources, institutions, innovation, and political will?<\/p>\n A Focused, High-Impact Programme.<\/strong><\/p>\n This one-day summit runs from 09h00 to 14h30 and will open with leadership from the SABC, followed by welcoming remarks from Wits Business School Dean, Professor Mills Soko. The Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies, Mr Solly Malatsi, is scheduled to address the gathering, highlighting government\u2019s recognition of the role media and public platforms play in shaping Africa\u2019s development narrative. Channel Africa Business Manager, Dicksy Ngqula, will set the tone with a keynote address titled Why Africa Matters, framing the conversations that will follow.<\/p>\n Three Panels, One Central Question<\/strong><\/p>\n At the heart of the summit are three carefully structured panel discussions, each designed to unpack a critical dimension of the day\u2019s central theme and move the conversation from analysis to action.<\/p>\n 1. Regulatory Environment: Enabler or Obstacle?<\/strong><\/p>\n Facilitated by veteran journalist Peter Ndoro, this panel examines whether Africa\u2019s regulatory frameworks are helping or hindering access to climate finance. Panellists include Kenneth Milanzi (Absa Group), Kumi Naidoo (climate justice activist), Saliem Fakir (African Climate Foundation), Dr Kwame Ababio (NEPAD), and Allan Mukoki (South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry).<\/p>\n 2. Finance and Capital Mobilisation: Who Pays for Africa\u2019s Recovery?<\/strong><\/p>\n Facilitated by Thami Ngubeni, this discussion explores where climate finance should come from and how it can realistically be mobilised. Panellists include Dr Cosmas Milton Obote Ochieng (UNECA), Pooven Moodley (Oxfam South Africa), Dr Manessah Alagbaoso (Standard Bank Group), and Khabonina Masango (WWF South Africa).<\/p>\n 3. From Dialogue to Delivery: Solutions That Move the Needle<\/strong><\/p>\n Sponsored by the Black Management Forum (BMF), this panel shifts the focus firmly to action. It will be introduced by BMF Managing Director Monde Ndlovu and facilitated by Tsepiso Makwetla, the session focuses on practical, implementable solutions. Panellists include BMF President Mpho Solomon Motsei, Tebogo Maake (Nedbank), Dr Shingarirai Mutanga (CSIR), and Dr Paul Mulindwa (CIVICUS).<\/p>\n From Words to Intent.<\/strong><\/p>\n With just five days to go, Channel Africa\u2019s message is unmistakable. The groundwork has been laid, the voices are confirmed, and the urgency of the moment leaves no room for delay. Africa matters, not as a slogan, but as a call to action. Next week Wednesday 25 March, in Johannesburg, that call will move from words to intent. Do not be left behind.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n –ChannelAfrica–<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":29200,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"news-type":[78,26],"class_list":["post-29313","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","news-type-featured","news-type-general_news","entry"],"acf":{"short_description":"Africa contributes less than 4% of global greenhouse gas emissions.","published_date":"","news_description":"Africa contributes less than 4% of global greenhouse gas emissions.","form_embed":"","author":"","image_caption":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/29313","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/29313\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":29332,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/29313\/revisions\/29332"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/29200"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29313"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"news-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-type?post=29313"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}