As part of efforts aimed at amplifying the voices of African communities bearing the brunt of climate change and corporate exploitation, Africa Make Big Polluters Pay coalition has officially launched the ”Make Big Polluters Pay” MBPP Storytelling Platform.
The platform will allow frontline communities across the continent to share their experiences and advocate for climate justice.
The platform, hosted on https://talesofafricasclimate.org, highlights the harsh realities of extractive industries, challenges ineffective solutions, and promotes sustainable alternatives.
Designed as a “virtual fireplace,” the site will bring together African climate advocates each month, sharing stories that humanize the climate struggle and inspire broader engagement in the fight against environmental injustice.
Speaking at the launch, the Executive Director of Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa, CAPPA, Akinbode Oluwafemi, thanked the coalition and its partners for empowering frontline communities. “Africa is at the forefront of the global climate crisis,” Oluwafemi stated. “Yet, these community stories are often sidelined in mainstream discourse. If we don’t tell our stories, no one will.”
He encouraged members to contribute stories, calling the platform a collective effort to spotlight African voices.
Corporate Accountability’s Africa Climate Director, Hellen Neima, underscored the cultural resonance of the storytelling platform, likening it to Africa’s rich tradition of sharing stories around the fire. “We are breathing life into our climate justice struggles and inspiring others to join the cause,” Neima said, highlighting the coalition’s mission to hold polluters accountable and make them pay.
On her part, Ndivile Mokena, from South Africa-based Gender CC – Women for Climate Justice, expressed hope that the platform would elevate underreported African stories of environmental resilience and resistance. “This platform will unite us to voice our demands on critical issues, from adaptation to compensation,” Mokena said. “We must share our struggles and call for reparations crucial to Africa’s climate fight.”
CAPPA’s Head of the Climate Campaign, Olamide Ogunlade, urged African countries to address climate issues as a matter of survival, noting that climate justice is too often reduced to charity.
“We need evidence to push for true accountability,” he said, highlighting that this evidence will help reframe climate justice as an essential right.
CAPPA Media Officer, Robert Egbe further emphasized the importance of storytelling in the African climate narrative, as the Global North’s industrial practices disproportionately impact African communities.
With messages of solidarity pouring in from across the continent, the MBPP Storytelling Platform is positioned to be a vital resource in Africa’s climate justice movement. Through these shared stories, the coalition hopes to catalyze meaningful change and garner global attention to Africa’s call for environmental accountability and justice.