Source: Africa Publicity
Climate-change-literate Africans overwhelmingly want rich, developed countries to take immediate action and assist poorer nations to mitigate the impacts of climate change, a new Afrobarometer Pan-Africa Profile report shows.
They also want their own governments to take proactive measures – such as investing in infrastructure and adopting mitigation policies – despite their potential costs.
The report, based on findings from Afrobarometer’s Round 10 surveys across 38 African countries in 2024/2025, shows that more than four in 10 African adults are climate-change literate (meaning they are both aware of climate change and understand that it is driven by human activity), though climate-change literacy varies greatly by country and demographic group.
Key findings:
• Drought and crop failure are the most widely experienced climate threat, with half of respondents reporting that these events have become “somewhat more” or “much more” severe in their local area over the past decade.
• Climate-change-literate Africans assign primary responsibility for addressing climate change to their own governments (37%), wealthy or developed nations (26%), ordinary citizens (20%), and business/industry (11%).
• Among climate-change-literate respondents, there is overwhelming demand for developed countries to take immediate action on climate change (83%) and to assist poorer nations (85%), alongside strong backing for their own governments to take proactive measures (73%).
• Africans strongly support government climate action through infrastructure investment (81%) and pressure on wealthy nations for climate aid (78%), with moderate support for banning tree cutting for fuel (51%) and mandating the use of cleaner cookstoves (47%).
