Former Nigerian VP sees 'human resources' as tech solution to climate crisis

Research overwhelmingly shows that Africa is one of the continents most affected by climate change despite contributing the least to global emissions, according to the World Meteorological Organization.

The global community has proposed several tech solutions to help adapt to the climate crisis including smart sewer systems designed to mitigate flooding during heavy rainfall and crops engineered to thrive in drought conditions.

However, the former Vice President of Nigeria, Oluyemi Osinbajo, has introduced a different approach to tackling the climate crisis in Africa.

"There's this need for us to focus on those things that will enable our people - a critical thing for me is an investment in human resources as opposed to just [technology] structures, etc.," he told Connecting Africa on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank annual 2024 meetings in Washington D.C.

"Investments in education right now are important - because a lot of the technology, a lot of everything we are talking about, will be independent of human capacity - so we will definitely need to invest in human resources," he added, referencing the need to train African's young population in the usage of digital skills like artificial intelligence (AI) to address the climate's impact on the continent.

Related:Leveraging agritech to build resilience against climate change

"The climate crisis affects practically everyone; it affects, for example, in some of our countries, educational opportunities; it affects health care, right? Because of the devastation that has taken place," he said.

Osinbajo explained that due to disruption caused by climate change, some of Nigeria's school-aged children are out of school.

According to a report by UNICEF, a United Nations agency that works to protect the rights of children globally, climate change is disrupting essential services, including water, sanitation and health care, with the situation representing a critical threat to their well-being, education and long-term prospects. 

The role of technology in Africa's climate adaptation

Despite Osinbajo's belief that investment in human capital could be the technological solution to addressing climate change in Africa, a more common approach comes from Mohamed Adow, the founder and director of energy at climate think tank Power Shift Africa.

He believes climate change cannot be thwarted without technology, something that has been top of mind for African leaders for quite some time.

"Technology is an essential part of how we tackle climate change in Africa - and has long been an ask of African delegates through the UN climate talks over the years," Adow said.

Related:AI's potential in African agriculture, energy and climate action – GSMA

"Thankfully, humankind has created renewable energy technology to harness clean energy from the wind and sun. That technology is getting better and more efficient all the time," he added.

Renewable energy resources can aid in mitigating the risks associated with fossil fuels, which are coal, oil and natural gas, the primary contributors to climate change.

When these fuels are burned, large amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2), a potent greenhouse gas, are released into the atmosphere, trapping heat and leading to global warming.

International collaboration needed to close the resource gap

One of many solutions to slow the risks of climate change, according to Adow, is for countries like the United States to act swiftly.

"What would really help accelerate the African energy transition away from fossil fuels would be if this technology, which is largely developed in the Global North, would be shared with countries in the Global South. This 'technology transfer' has been asked for by African governments for many years at the COP [Conference of the Parties] summits, but rich countries continue to drag their feet," Adow said.

According to the United Nations (UN), the climate crisis hits every economy harder each year.

Additionally, a study in the journal Nature by researchers at Germany's Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research found considerable inequity when it comes to climate impacts.

"The countries least responsible for climate change are predicted to suffer income loss that is 60% greater than the higher-income countries and 40% greater than higher-emission countries," said Anders Levermann, co-author of the study and head of research at Potsdam Institute's department of complexity science.

"They are also the ones with the least resources to adapt to its impacts. It is on us to decide: structural change towards a renewable energy system is needed for our security and will save us money. Staying on the path we are currently on, will lead to catastrophic consequences," Levermann added.

Former Vice President of Nigeria, Oluyemi Osinbajo, believes that tackling climate change will need investment in human resources and not just technology structures. (Source: Eden Harris)

Adow believes in the United Nations' call for science, solutions and solidarity for a livable planet, but he places more emphasis on solidarity regarding allocated resources.

"If that technology can be shared more openly, it has huge potential to fight climate change, radically boost energy access across Africa and help tackle poverty in some of the most remote communities in the Global South," he told Connecting Africa.

The World Economic Forum (WEF), an organization that collaborates with government, businesses and civil society to enhance global well-being, builds on what Adow believes.

WEF subscribes to the idea that achieving the full potential of clean energy innovation necessitates international cooperation and collective action and that through collaboration countries can expedite the shift towards a sustainable energy future.

In an effort to accelerate the UN's Paris Agreement – an international treaty legally binding nations to address climate change – global members, including Morocco and the United States, launched Mission Innovation in 2021.

The initiative aims to invest in research and development to make clean energy affordable and accessible for all.

In addition to its goals, during a recent 2024 climate-focused meeting in Brazil, Mission Innovation summarized its efforts toward international cooperation in technology and innovation and acknowledged the need to "focus on capacity building, skills development and knowledge transfer."

However, for the former Vice President of Nigeria, nurturing Africa's human capital is seen as a key technological way of tackling the climate crisis.

"I think that for me, the primary thing is how do we develop human resources in such a way as to challenge the climate crisis," Osinbajo told Connecting Africa.