Symposium Of Episcopal Conferences Of Africa And Madagascar (SECAM) Statement For COP31 – Protecting Africa’s Forests, Waters, Lands, And Biodiversity: Protecting Africa Means Protecting The Planet.

ACCRA, Ghana, 8th of November, 2026 : As the Catholic Church in Africa, the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) (https://SECAM.org/) calls upon governments, development partners, international financial institutions, businesses, civil society, and all people of good will participating in COP31 to recognize that protecting Africa’s forests, waters, lands, and biodiversity is essential for safeguarding the planet and ensuring a just and sustainable future for present and future generations.

Indeed, Africa is home to ecosystems of global significance. At the heart of this ecological heritage lies the Congo Basin rainforest, the second-largest tropical rainforest in the world and one of the planet’s most vital reservoirs of carbon and biodiversity. Its forests, rivers, wetlands, and peatlands regulate the climate, support livelihoods, foster food and water security, and serve as both a home and a cultural foundation for millions of people. Protecting the Congo Basin is, therefore, not solely Africa’s responsibility; it is a global responsibility.

SECAM is particularly concerned about the interconnected pressures weighing on Africa’s forests and natural resources, including deforestation and forest degradation, the unsustainable exploitation of minerals and timber, agricultural expansion, land degradation, water insecurity, biodiversity loss, pollution, and the impacts of climate change. These pressures disproportionately affect poor and vulnerable communities, including Indigenous peoples, local communities, women, children, and youth, whose livelihoods and well-being depend directly on healthy ecosystems. In the spirit of “Laudato Si’” and the Church’s commitment to integral human development and ecological conversion, SECAM calls for a climate response that places human dignity, ecological integrity, intergenerational justice, and the common good at its center. Africa must not be viewed merely as a source of natural resources or as a recipient of climate aid. African countries and communities must be recognized as essential partners and stewards in the global effort to address the climate and biodiversity crises.