At a Civil Society Organisation (CSO) dialogue in Kanifing, organised by ActionAid International, The Gambia, voices rose in unison against a shared injustice, the burden of climate change on nations that have contributed the least to its creation. Under the banner of climate justice and sustainable development, participants highlighted a harsh reality: while The Gambia produces less than 0.01% of global greenhouse gas emissions, it is among the countries most severely affected by climate impacts.
Fafa O. Cham, Head of Programs and Policies at ActionAid International, The Gambia, did not mince words. “Despite our minimal contribution to the climate crisis, The Gambia is spending millions of dollars to build the resilience of vulnerable communities and mitigate climate-related challenges,” he stated.
Yet this struggle is not limited to technical solutions or local adaptation strategies. Cham emphasized that African nations, including The Gambia, are increasingly taking out high-interest loans to cope with the effects of climate change.
“We are being forced to pay the price for problems we did not create. Wealthy nations and major polluters are responsible, yet it is our people, our services, and our futures that are paying,” he said.
From Dialogue to Action: A National Forum for Development Financing
The CSO dialogue was a precursor to a more expansive initiative, the National Forum on Financing for Development. This upcoming forum will examine The Gambia’s Recovery Focused – National Development Plan (RF-NDP), with a particular focus on sectors such as agriculture, the environment, climate change, and resilience against economic and ecological shocks. The aim is clear: to assess what has been achieved, identify critical gaps, and recommend strategic actions for sustainable development.
Lamin Dibba, Executive Director, Centre for Budget and Macroeconomic Transparency, echoed the need for collective action rooted in knowledge and accountability. “We are here to critically scrutinize progress on the NDP, especially concerning climate change mitigation, adaptation, and the issues of loss and damage,” he explained. “Only through informed and united advocacy can we influence policy and demand the right actions from state actors.”
The Price of Injustice: Debt Over Development
Central to the discussion was the link between climate change and public debt. The Gambia’s national debt, which exceeds $100 billion, is increasingly being driven by climate-related borrowing. CSO representatives painted a sobering picture: more money is spent on debt repayment than on essential public services like health, education, and agriculture. And this is not unique to The Gambia, this pattern repeats itself across the African continent.
“If climate debt were to be calculated and honoured by the world’s wealthiest and most polluting nations, it would far exceed The Gambia’s national debt,” Cham asserted. “That alone is a compelling case for debt cancellation.”
Justice, Not Charity
The call for debt cancellation is not framed as charity; it is a demand for justice. It is about restoring equity in a global system that has historically marginalized and exploited the Global South. It is about shifting resources away from debt repayment toward community-centred development, resilience building, and climate adaptation.
“This dialogue is not just a meeting,” Dibba reminded attendees. “It’s a platform for change, to ensure our development plans are not just on paper but in practice, aligned with climate justice and people’s needs.”
A United Front for Climate Accountability
As the session concluded, participants left with a renewed sense of urgency and solidarity. The road ahead is challenging, but the message was unmistakable: the era of silence and passive suffering must end.
It is time to raise our voices, hold polluters accountable, and demand climate justice, rooted in equity, reparations, and real support for those who bear the heaviest burdens.
The Gambia, like many nations in the Global South, is no longer waiting for justice. It is organizing for it.
