Debt relief is the last hope for Africa to withstand climate change shocks

President William Ruto and African Heads of State and government during the Second Africa Climate Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, On September 8, 2025. [PCS]

Africa is trapped in a vicious cycle. It faces escalating climate disasters but spends more on debt repayment than on protecting its people.

In 2023, African nations paid over $70 billion in debt servicing—money that could have built climate-resilient infrastructure, expanded renewable energy, and funded adaptation projects. Instead, countries borrowed even more to survive crises they did not create.