The Africa Just Transition Network (AJTN) brought together over 30 civil society organisations, grassroots leaders, and policy advocates for its 2025 Annual Meeting, held in Johannesburg from 22 to 24 July. The gathering served as a strategic moment to reconnect, reflect, and realign African voices around the urgent need for a just energy transition that puts people and the planet before profit.
The meeting unpacked some of the continent’s most pressing questions:
- How do we phase out coal in ways that don’t leave workers and communities behind?
- What does responsible critical mineral extraction look like in practice?
- How do we build a truly pan-African movement capable of influencing COP30 and beyond?
SARW participated as a key member of the network and contributor to ongoing regional advocacy efforts. We shared our experiences mobilising community action through the Africa Mining Accountability Platform (AMAP) and advancing collaborative frameworks like the Pamoja Critical Minerals Alliance. These tools are helping to anchor mining governance in community realities, strengthen grievance redress mechanisms, and push back against exploitative models of development.
Discussions also highlighted the need to confront growing foreign influence in Africa’s energy landscape particularly the role of Chinese and Western investments in critical mineral extraction and ensure that new energy pathways do not replicate the injustices of the past.
A just energy transition in Africa must reject one-size-fits-all solutions and instead reflect our diverse realities, local demands, and the urgency of redistribution.”
The convening closed with a commitment to build stronger regional alliances ahead of COP30 in Brazil and to develop joint strategies for tackling the structural and political barriers standing in the way of a truly transformative transition.
This meeting reaffirmed the power of African solidarity in the face of deepening inequalities and extractive agendas and SARW will continue to play an active role in shaping a just, community-driven energy future.
