African ministers agreed to make the African Ministerial Conference on the Environment (AMCEN) the region’s forum for developing regional environment policies with mechanisms for implementation. The Conference focused on the need for African countries to pursue global and regional frameworks and policies to achieve the SDGs and Africa’s Agenda 2063 while protecting the continent’s biodiversity and preventing environmental degradation.

The 17th Ordinary Session of AMCEN convened from 11-15 November, in Durban, South Africa. The session focused on the theme, ‘Taking action for Environmental Sustainability and Prosperity in Africa.’

Ministers agreed on a ‘Durban Declaration on taking action for environmental sustainability and prosperity in Africa.’ The Declaration addresses action for environmental sustainability; the circular economy; the blue economy; biodiversity; land degradation, desertification and drought; climate change; plastic pollution; and informed decision-making. On action for environmental sustainability, Ministers committed to evaluate their progress in implementing decisions and reaffirmed their commitment to use all regional and national policy tools to achieve coherent delivery of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and Africa’s Agenda 2063. On strengthening decision-making, Ministers welcomed the proposal for a science-based policy-business forum to support informed policy-making on environmental issues.

On the circular economy, Ministers recognized its value and potential to improve the way goods and services are produced and consumed as well as to create jobs, contribute to sustainable development and reduce waste. Ministers also committed to use, scale up and replicate circular economy approaches as part of Africa’s transformation efforts. Ministers further committed to raise awareness on both the circular economy and the blue economy and encourage the private sector to promote and invest in the circular economy to create employment and sustainable trade in and markets for green products and services. They stressed the development of a blue economy in Africa to support the continent’s economic development and to mitigate the impacts of natural disasters such as cyclones and floods.

On biodiversity, Ministers committed to address the threats facing biological resources and to provide political direction and momentum in support of a post-2020 global biodiversity framework. They committed to mainstream biodiversity conservation in the agriculture sector to ensure that food production doesn’t negatively impact ecosystem health. As part of Africa’s commitment to implementing the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration 2021-2030, Ministers reaffirmed their pledge to implement the Pan-African Action Agenda on Ecosystem Restoration for Increased Resilience.

Ministers reaffirmed their pledge to implement the Pan-African Action Agenda on Ecosystem Restoration for Increased Resilience.

On land degradation, desertification and drought, Ministers reaffirmed their commitment to the 2018-2030 Strategic Framework of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and recognized the value of land degradation neutrality. They committed to provide adequate resources to address the drivers of migration related to desertification, land degradation and drought.

On climate change, Ministers acknowledged the findings of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) special reports, which they observed reflect the specific circumstances of Africa and the linkage between Africa’s climate vulnerability and development challenges. They reaffirmed African countries’ commitment to implementing the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and its Paris Agreement, emphasized the importance of implementing their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), and confirmed Africa’s commitment to securing successful outcomes at the 25th session of  the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC (COP 25, or the UN Climate Change Conference). 

On plastic pollution, Ministers committed to supporting global action to address plastic pollution and to further work to engage more effectively on global governance issues on plastic pollution, including by reinforcing existing agreements or through a new global agreement on plastic pollution that takes a comprehensive approach to addressing the full life cycle of plastics. [UNEP Press Release] [AMCEN Webpage] [Durban Declaration]