The Africa Green Waste and Energy Expo and Conference 11th Edition held from the 26th to the 29th of July 2022 provided a platform for women and youth to participate in all engagements of the conference. The move shows that there is a significant improvement in terms of youth and women’s progressions in the climate change arena. The Africa Green Waste and Energy Expo and Conference is held on annual basis and is attended by delegates from different parts of Africa. The 2022 Edition was attended by youths and women from as far as Zambia, Malawi, South Africa, Mozambique among other countries.
This year’s edition of the Expo was running under the theme, “Staging an Intervention for a Climate Resilient Future”.
In the previous editions, the participation of women and youths was limited and this could have been caused by lack of enabling factors for meaningful inclusion such as inadequate capacity and awareness among young people and women. A change was noted this year. The networking platforms provided for youths enhanced their ability to amplify their voice and to also participate in climate change programmes on a maximized perspective.
Women and youths are regarded as vulnerable groups. This has been a trend in policy documents and at international forums. Research reveals that women are the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and are prone to be affected by issues around water, poverty, food insecurity and energy factors. To add onto that, young people’s future will be in jeopardy if nothing is done to address climate change issues hence meaningful engagement becomes a necessity by both women and youths.
Observations made by this publication shows that women and youth were active during the proceedings of the main engagement and the three side events. Meaningful involvement is when women and youths become the drivers of their own in speaking on issues that affects them. Apart from advocacy issues they are also now part of the action. The element of institutional organization is another reality that categorically positions women and youths in terms of organizational representation and having the ability to add their voices in the climate change discourse.
The Stockholm 50+ feedback which was held on the sidelines of the main event reflected on the special needs for the youths and women in climate change programming. This also included persons with disabilities. Women and youths are moving from being classified as marginalized or vulnerable as they are making efforts to stand for themselves and fight for their rights.
Youths are departing from just being climate change activists to being implementers of climate change programmes. Tinashe Mangosho, Tinashe Dhlakama, Claris Mandoreba, Tapiwa Kamuroko and Melisa Murwira are some of the youths who are now technical experts in different areas of climate change.
During the proceedings of the main event, most youths were seen factoring in their contributions on technical grounds thereby signaling a meaningful inclusion.
On the side events, Delight Bumhira a young climate advocate personnel stirred the proceedings of the Children’s Conference, Melissa Murwira, Executive, the Director of Young Volunteers for the Environment (YVE Zimbabwe) was leading the session on Green Youth Academy. The Green Youth Academy provided a platform for young people in identifying opportunities in the current Revised Nationally Determined Contributions on climate change (NDCs) in the sectors of energy, agriculture and waste.
The engagement also marked as a follow up on the youths’ position paper on Zimbabwe’s NDCs championed by African Youths Initiatives on Climate Change (AYICC), a process that was coordinated by Elizabeth Gulugulu and other Zimbabwean youths.
These platforms became a centre of discussion around women and youths’ participation in national programmes and international forums.
The main challenge left is for women and youths to develop capacities in areas around formalization and compliance. Without proper registry documents, it becomes difficult for women and youths to tap into NDC Sectors as these requires adherence to national laws.
