Ahead of the 2nd Africa Climate Summit in Addis Ababa, African faith leaders have come together to issue the Addis Ababa Faith Declaration on Climate Justice, calling for urgent, equitable, and inclusive climate action grounded in justice, peace, and care for the environment. This declaration is the result of months of interfaith consultations and collaborative reflection, organized by several religious and climate-focused organizations including ACT Alliance and the Ethiopian Orthodox Church Development and Inter-Church Aid Commission.
Africa remains one of the most vulnerable continents to climate change, facing increasing droughts, floods, food insecurity, and displacement, despite being one of the smallest contributors to global emissions. Faith leaders from diverse traditions—including Christian, Muslim, Ethiopian Orthodox, and traditional communities—have united to act as moral advocates for justice and dignity. They urge governments, international institutions, and the private sector to respond with fairness and urgency.
The declaration emphasizes several key priorities. It highlights the inseparable link between peace and climate justice, calling for the integration of peacebuilding and inclusive governance in climate adaptation strategies. It demands debt cancellation to relieve African economies and free up resources for climate action. The leaders call for overdue, grant-based climate finance focused on adaptation, loss and damage, and community-led initiatives. They also stress the importance of ambitious emission reductions by major polluters and advocate for a just energy transition in Africa that supports workers and expands clean energy access.
The declaration further promotes protecting indigenous and faith-rooted food sovereignty practices to sustain biodiversity and resilience. It calls for closing Africa’s adaptation finance gap through adequate funding and integration of climate risks in planning. Unlocking finance and institutional support for accessing the Loss and Damage Fund is also emphasized. Importantly, the declaration underscores the need to center marginalized groups—including youth, women, people with disabilities—and foster interfaith solidarity in climate leadership and solutions.
Archbishop Abune Bernas of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church described creation as a sacred trust from God, emphasizing stewardship of the natural balance as both a spiritual duty and a resilience strategy. Julius Mbatia from ACT Alliance highlighted the pivotal role of faith institutions in advancing just climate action across Africa. Dr. Tinashe Gumbo of the All Africa Conference of Churches stressed that climate change threatens lives and livelihoods, urging political leaders to prioritize concrete actions such as funding adaptation and loss-and-damage efforts, supporting indigenous solutions, and expanding renewable energy access to protect vulnerable communities.
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