16
V. R. Nalule
dignified life when they are working ’.
29 This statement clarifies the realities of not only impoverished people in Europe but also those in African
countries, and this, in turn, makes it clear that countries cannot only say
goodbye to fossil fuels without finding cheaper alternatives.
30 It is one
thing to have ambitious policies on paper, and it is another thing to put
these in practice and make them acceptable to struggling populations.
On the one hand, we are evidencing an increase in protests by climate
change activists, on the other hand, we are seeing struggling populations
such of those represented by the ‘gilets jaunes’ in France also protesting
against an increase in diesel prices. On the African continent, besides
having over 600 million people lacking access to electricity; data indicates
that seven million people die each year due to air pollution including
indoor air pollution caused by overreliance on traditional biomass.
31 In
economic terms, data shows that 736 million people lived below the
international poverty line of US $1.90 a day in 2015: and most of these
people were in SSA.
32 In brief, the reasons to reconsider the ‘Energy
Transition’ term and replace it with ‘Energy Progression’ include:
• The escalating energy access challenges due to the pressure from the
global energy transition debates. Many people are likely to lack access
to electricity in 2040.
• The decline in funding for fossil fuel projects. As highlighted in
Section one, financial institutions are already banning funding for oil,
gas and coal projects.
• The decline in investments in fossil fuels
• Technological barriers to ensure an effective energy transition in
Africa.
29 Willsher, K. 2018. Gilets Jaunes Protests in France to Continue Despite Fuel Tax U-Turn.
The Guardian Newspaper, 4 Tuesday. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/dec/04/frenchgovernment-to-suspend-fuel-tax-increasesay-reports.
30 Nalule, V.R., 2020. Transitioning to a Low Carbon Economy: Is Africa Ready to Bid Farewell
to Fossil Fuels? In The Palgrave Handbook of Managing Fossil Fuels and Energy Transitions
(pp. 261–286). Palgrave Macmillan, Cham.
31 UNEP, Air Pollution: Africa’s Invisible, Silent Killer. 20 October 2016. Can be
accessed at, https://www.unenvironment.org/news-and-stories/story/air-pollution-africas-invisi
ble-silent-killer-1.
32 United Nations: Ending Poverty. Can be accessed at, https://www.un.org/en/sections/issuesdepth/poverty/.
V. R. Nalule
dignified life when they are working ’.
29 This statement clarifies the realities of not only impoverished people in Europe but also those in African
countries, and this, in turn, makes it clear that countries cannot only say
goodbye to fossil fuels without finding cheaper alternatives.
30 It is one
thing to have ambitious policies on paper, and it is another thing to put
these in practice and make them acceptable to struggling populations.
On the one hand, we are evidencing an increase in protests by climate
change activists, on the other hand, we are seeing struggling populations
such of those represented by the ‘gilets jaunes’ in France also protesting
against an increase in diesel prices. On the African continent, besides
having over 600 million people lacking access to electricity; data indicates
that seven million people die each year due to air pollution including
indoor air pollution caused by overreliance on traditional biomass.
31 In
economic terms, data shows that 736 million people lived below the
international poverty line of US $1.90 a day in 2015: and most of these
people were in SSA.
32 In brief, the reasons to reconsider the ‘Energy
Transition’ term and replace it with ‘Energy Progression’ include:
• The escalating energy access challenges due to the pressure from the
global energy transition debates. Many people are likely to lack access
to electricity in 2040.
• The decline in funding for fossil fuel projects. As highlighted in
Section one, financial institutions are already banning funding for oil,
gas and coal projects.
• The decline in investments in fossil fuels
• Technological barriers to ensure an effective energy transition in
Africa.
29 Willsher, K. 2018. Gilets Jaunes Protests in France to Continue Despite Fuel Tax U-Turn.
The Guardian Newspaper, 4 Tuesday. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/dec/04/frenchgovernment-to-suspend-fuel-tax-increasesay-reports.
30 Nalule, V.R., 2020. Transitioning to a Low Carbon Economy: Is Africa Ready to Bid Farewell
to Fossil Fuels? In The Palgrave Handbook of Managing Fossil Fuels and Energy Transitions
(pp. 261–286). Palgrave Macmillan, Cham.
31 UNEP, Air Pollution: Africa’s Invisible, Silent Killer. 20 October 2016. Can be
accessed at, https://www.unenvironment.org/news-and-stories/story/air-pollution-africas-invisi
ble-silent-killer-1.
32 United Nations: Ending Poverty. Can be accessed at, https://www.un.org/en/sections/issuesdepth/poverty/.