US President Joe Biden and Kenya's President William Ruto stand as national anthems are played during an official arrival ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC. Photo: Mandel NGAN / AFPAfrica's vast potential in the global fight against climate change is at risk due to the heavy burden of debt and lack of international investment, Kenyan President William Ruto said Thursday.
On a state visit to Washington, Ruto highlighted how Kenya already generates some 90 percent of energy from renewables and said the rest of Africa had"massive" potential in the green"Our continent has the fundamentals to be a major player" in several areas"needed to avert the climate catastrophe," Ruto said in a speech.
"It is not our business to keep trees. It is not our business to keep forest. It will not materialize if we are so crippled by debt that we cannot educate our youth, if investors deem us too risky to engage," he said.Ruto pointed to the growing costs of disasters related to climate change, with Africa particularly hard hit, but said that green investment in Africa also made economic sense.
It called for more international support for countries that"commit to ambitious reforms and high-quality plans" in areas such as climate change.