The Declaration

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African leaders proposed a global carbon tax aimed at tackling climate change and providing financial assistance to less developed nations, following a three-day climate summit in Kenya this week, the Financial Times reported Thursday.

Known as the Nairobi Declaration, the initiative advocates for the establishment of a global carbon levy that targets the fossil fuel trade and shipping. It also calls for the implementation of a worldwide financial transaction tax.

The declaration said a carbon price was important to ensure “affordable and accessible finance for climate positive investments at scale,” and called for the “ringfencing of these resources and decision-making from geopolitical and national interests.”

Kenyan President William Ruto, who hosted the summit, voiced support for the carbon tax, saying that all countries should participate in this endeavor instead of it burdening only major polluters.

The Nairobi Declaration was agreed to following the African Climate Summit, an event that marked the first time the nations of the African continent have come together to seek solutions on how to tackle the climate crisis.

Even though Africa accounts for about four percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, the continent is one of the areas in the world worst affected by climate change.

The initiative is intended to serve as an important negotiating tool at COP28, the upcoming United Nations climate summit scheduled to take place in the United Arab Emirates later this year.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who attended the summit, urged world leaders to work together in creating a plan for a global carbon price at COP28.

The International Monetary Fund has previously said that a global carbon price would be one of the most expeditious and effective methods to curtail carbon dioxide emissions around the world.

However, the concept of implementing such a tax has faced challenges and resistance from numerous countries.