🧃 Carbon Colonialism Isn’t Dead - It Just Got Rebranded

Welcome to The Strawman, the daily climate newsletter that’s been carbon-neutral since about five seconds ago — because that’s how long it takes some Western companies to "offset" emissions by buying $1 credits for African forest protection.

From Land Grabs to Carbon Grabs

According to Akinwumi Adesina, the outgoing president of the African Development Bank (AfDB), the new scramble for Africa isn’t about diamonds or farmland — it’s about carbon. More specifically: the cheap, barely regulated credits tied to carbon sequestration. Where Europe’s carbon permits can cost upwards of €200 per tonne, some African countries are being offered just $3. One Liberian official said he was quoted $1 per tonne to preserve vast swaths of rainforest. That’s not a deal; it’s daylight robbery with a greenwashed mask.

These “carbon grabs” often take the form of offset schemes — projects like cookstove distribution or avoided deforestation. But the integrity of many of these efforts is shaky at best, and when prices are this low, countries are sacrificing their natural capital for crumbs.

$3 a Tonne? Africa’s Natural Wealth on Clearance

Adesina argues it’s time to rethink how we measure wealth — especially in resource-rich Africa. If natural assets like forests, biodiversity, and carbon sinks were counted in GDP, countries could boost their borrowing capacity and attract fairer investment. Instead, African nations remain stuck between punitive debt and the empty promises of international aid.

Meanwhile, the west continues to extract value via carbon markets without meaningful compensation. A more equitable model would calculate the full economic value of natural ecosystems and give African nations a real stake in global decarbonisation — not just a pat on the back and a micro-loan.

Gas, GDP, and Getting Real About Development

Adesina didn’t stop at carbon. He also slammed what he sees as an overly ideological stance on renewables. While the west debates wind vs. solar over cocktails, many African nations still lack basic electricity. The AfDB’s current rules don’t allow for investment in upstream oil and gas — but Adesina says it's time to reconsider. Development can’t wait for perfect green solutions if it means leaving millions in the dark.

He also warned that the era of easy aid is over. With the US and Europe slashing contributions, Africa must navigate a tougher geopolitical landscape — think more trade, investment, and self-reliance, and less waiting on donor largesse. Or as he put it: "Africa is not going to beg its way to development."

The Takeaway: The climate fight can’t be won by handing out forest-shaped participation trophies and calling it justice. If the world wants Africa to be a carbon sink, it needs to pay the actual price — not the discounted rate for buyers with a guilty conscience.