Africa's Right to Development in a Climate-Constrained World

Africa stands at a crossroads. Its countries have made ambitious commitments to decarbonise, while facing an equally urgent need to industrialise, grow their economies, and lift hundreds of millions of people out of poverty. With the continent's population projected to reach 2.5 billion by 2050, reconciling these goals is not only a policy challenge but also a strategic question of justice, agency, and redefining Africa's place in the global system.

This book argues that the international climate regime has undergone a profound transformation, quietly shifting greater responsibility onto African countries. The founding promise of global climate cooperation—that industrialised countries would lead emissions reductions while supporting developing countries to pursue low-carbon development—has steadily weakened. Although the Paris Agreement marked a historic milestone, it also diluted the principle of differentiated responsibilities that African countries fought hard to secure, leaving them to navigate a more demanding and less equitable climate regime. In response, the book advances a new paradigm—Governing Complexity. Drawing on a systems perspective of the international climate regime, it offers a novel framework for understanding how Africa can navigate an increasingly complex climate landscape, positioning the continent not as a passive recipient of externally driven climate agendas but as a strategic and confident actor capable of shaping its own climate and development future.

Written by African scholars with extensive experience in climate negotiations, international politics, law, and public policy, the book combines archival research, policy analysis, and original quantitative evidence to deliver a timely and compelling account of one of the defining challenges of the twenty-first century. Rigorous yet accessible, it offers new insights for scholars, policymakers, practitioners, and anyone seeking to understand the future of climate cooperation, sustainable development, and Africa's role in shaping global climate governance.