By Michael Oche
In a significant move to strengthen Africa’s workers’ voice at the upcoming Conference of the Parties (COP30), African trade unions are set to meet with the African Group of Negotiators (AGN) in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, from August 4-8, 2025.
The meeting, organized by the African Regional Organisation of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC-Africa) in collaboration with Trade Unions for Energy Democracy (TUED), aims to create a unified and strategic approach for Africa’s climate negotiations ahead of COP30 in Belém, Brazil.
Trade Unions have expressed disappointment with the outcomes of COP29, saying it didn’t address workers demands.
“Through this collaboration, African trade unions aim to help engineer context specific, homegrown solutions to the climate crisis—solutions rooted in the lived realities of our people and in our deepened understanding of the socio political and economic dynamics of the continent,” ITUC-Africa General Secretary Akhator Joel Odigie said in a statement.
Our Correspondent reports that the Dar es Salaam event will be the first-ever formal interface between African trade unions and the AGN, setting the stage for a deeper collaboration on Africa’s climate and energy needs.
The African Group of Negotiators (AGN) is a coalition of African countries that negotiates a unified African position in global climate discussions, including those under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). It plays a crucial role in advocating for climate policies that reflect Africa’s specific needs and challenges.
According to over 60 representatives from trade unions, civil society organizations, media, feminist economists, and climate policy experts are expected to gather in Tanzania for the workshop.
“This renewed engagement reflects a recognition that African workers must not be sidelined in critical global processes such as the UNFCCC negotiations,” he said.
He explained that this collaboration will pave the way for African trade unions to become integral members of their respective governments’ delegations at COP30 and future climate talks.
“The synergy created in Dar es Salaam is expected to redefine how labour movements contribute to Africa’s quest for climate and environmental justice, ensuring that energy, debt, and climate justice remain central to the continent’s demands at COP30 and beyond,” Odigie stressed.
Africa’s energy crisis remains deeply entrenched in systemic injustices, with over 600 million people lacking access to electricity.
Odigie solving the continent’s persistent energy crisis is not only a precondition for sustainable development but also a gateway to industrial progress.
He said, “Public investments and public ownership of energy systems, public pathways—are essential, as history shows us that all currently developed economies have reached and sustained their status through decisive public intervention and infrastructure development. Africa deserves no less.
“Following the underwhelming outcomes of COP29, the convening will reaffirm trade unions’ collective commitment to drive transformational change through public pathways, reclaiming energy sovereignty and prioritising debt justice, climate finance, and gender-equitable solutions.”
ITUC-Africa said the convening in Tanzania is expected to also serve as a platform to reclaim and restore public ownership over energy and extractive sectors; Elevate feminist perspectives in energy policy and Strengthen the continental trade union climate justice network;
It will also strategically engage with the AGN to shape a progressive African stance at COP30; and adopt a clear African Trade Union Energy Justice Agenda and Declaration for COP30.
“Climate and environmental justice must go hand in hand with development justice, and that means prioritising financing mechanisms that grow domestic resource mobilisation and promote public pathways to a just transition,” he said
