Staff Reporter
THE Minister of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform, Calle Schlettwein, called for a reassessment of the current multilateral financial system to facilitate the achievement of clean cooking in Africa by 2030.
He made these remarks at the Summit on Clean Cooking in Africa, held in Paris, France, which aimed to prioritize clean cooking on the global agenda and garner broader support for the initiative.
Schlettwein highlighted that both the public and private sectors in Namibia and many other African countries lack the financial capacity to achieve clean cooking. He explained that while achieving clean cooking by 2030 is a realistic goal, African economies are often burdened by debt, which limits their fiscal space. He added that funding models based on further borrowing would not be a viable solution for African economies.
“The current multilateral financial system, therefore, appears unfit for purpose and its review should become part and parcel of the clean cooking agenda as well as the climate change agenda as a whole. A viable financing model must deliver clean cooking and services to households for free since poor families have no ability to pay back loans,” he said.
The minister also advocated for inclusive strategies that address poverty and enhance sustainability in resource utilization.
“To finance the measures needed to bring about meaningful mitigation to this intersectional problem, there is a need for robust partnerships with industrialized countries, multinational companies, and the global private sector,” he suggested.
