Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa joined more than 50 leading Chief Executive Officers from Africa in presenting the Africa Business Leaders’ Climate Statement at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP27) in Egypt.

The statement issued at Sharm El Sheikh outlined credible corporate pledges and actions anchored in the Sustainable Development Goals and the UN Global Compact Ten Principles.

The CEOs are part of the Africa Business Leaders Coalition (ABLC), an initiative led by CEOs arising from the UN Global Compact Africa Strategy 2021-2023 committed to advancing sustainable growth, prosperity, and development in Africa by bringing measurable impact to its most pressing issues.

UN Global Compact Assistant Secretary-General, Executive Director and CEO, Sanda Ojiambo lauded the initiative while speaking during the event Climate Action Now: A Critical Priority for Business Leaders.

“The African business community is already changing Africa and impacting the world for the better. African companies are strengthening partnerships with critical stakeholders, especially governments, to jumpstart climate action across the continent,” Said Ojiambo.

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She added, “The Africa Business Leaders’ Climate Statement, which today has 55 signatories, brings a much-needed perspective and set of commitments to the global climate table. It reflects the strong commitment the ABLC member companies have made to driving sustainability efforts in their businesses and across their value chains and ecosystems.”


Peter Ndegwa, who spoke on behalf of the CEOs, called for actions tailor-made for the African continent.

“The historic statement brings together the African private perspective on crucial topics, something that is often missing, yet quite crucial and long overdue. It also defines the overall private sector climate action narrative for Africa, tailored to the continent’s context and specific climate action and asks as seen from the African perspective,” said Ndegwa.

The Africa Business Leaders’ Climate Statement outlines key pledges firms can make to galvanize climate action through:

• Developing robust company resilience plans to improve our adaptive capacity and build systemic resilience

• Upholding the guiding principles of a just transition as central to all our climate actions and advocacy

• Setting targets to drastically increase the use of renewables to contribute to the continental goal of 27%

• Contributing to a global dialogue to advance the understanding of the 'fair share' principle.

The statement also calls for action from the global community to:

• Fulfil and enhance the 100-billion-dollar goal by 2023 at the latest and ensure that at least 50% is invested in adaptation and resilience.

• Create an enabling environment that facilitates increased access to finance and ensures that African businesses can leverage global markets.

• Translate climate plans, such as Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and National Adaptation Plans (NAPs), into pipelines of bankable climate projects.

• Promote technology and knowledge exchange to make decarbonization and adaptation technologies and knowledge more accessible

The ABLC seeks to create a stronger partnership between Africa’s private sector and the UN to advance the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the African Union Agenda 2063.


The companies that make up the ABLC represent over one million employees and constitute a pan-African voice with a clear potential to galvanize resources and action by the continent’s private sector.

The companies have a combined revenue in excess of $200 billion and a geographical coverage totalling to 93 per cent of the African continent.