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Welcome back to COP, LOOK, LISTEN. Dedicated readers will remember that last year we noted the prominence of The African Energy Chamber (AEC) and its Executive Chairman Njock Ayuk Eyong (NJ Ayuk) at COP27. Despite promoting itself as a “Non-Profit Company” for “Africa’s dynamic energy industry”, the AEC functionally acts as a trade industry group for fossil fuels in the region. Its Board includes the Chief Economist of the American Petroleum Institute, a US group infamous for promoting doubt and uncertainty around climate science for decades. Meanwhile, African Energy Week (AEW) 2023 - an annual event run by AEC - was sponsored by
dozens of fossil fuel companies worldwide and attended almost entirely from the fossil fuel industry.
Last year we focused on the AEC’s influence during the summit, including its “drill baby, drill” message and successful spreading of ad hominem attacks against a climate journalist. This year we dug a little deeper into the scope of its impact across Africa. Our findings reveal a pretty significant level of influence.
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We checked for mentions of NJ Ayuk, the African Energy Chamber and African Energy Week across a range of regional media outlets since the end of COP27. We were unable to run an exhaustive analysis, but found mentions
in at least 1,000 articles in over 100 outlets spanning the continent. The AEC’s footprint is impressive, including:
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21 articles from South African outlet The Independent Online (IOL). According to Similarweb, IOL received an average of 14.5 million visits every month between August and October 2023. It was also included in our recent study of websites monetizing climate misinformation and denial through advertising.
9 articles in Vanguard Nigeria (average of 3.6m monthly visits), and 35 articles in Ghana’s Joy News (average 2.9m monthly visits).
Dozens of smaller outlets with pan-regional coverage also frequently cite the group. For example, we found 101 articles from african.business (202k monthly visits) and 30 on adomonline.com (343k monthly visits).
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African Energy Week, the flagship event of the African Energy Chamber, has dozens of sponsors, mostly from the fossil fuel industry
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While not every mention of the AEC, AEW or NJ Ayuk is
necessarily aligned with its talking points, the majority appear to be. Some merely quote the organisation; others feature entire articles on the AEC or AEW’s advocacy positions. The AEC frames fossil fuels - and especially fossil gas - as a catch-all solution to energy poverty, economic growth, private sector investment and a “just transition” in Africa.
But the claim that fossil fuels are essential to solve these legitimate issues are unfounded, including in Africa. Power Shift Africa has powerfully laid out how the region can achieve a “just transition” by mostly “leapfrogging” fossil fuels, as it did with landline technology, and states that “prioritizing extractive industries” is “a post-colonial
trap”.
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The AEC’s views on energy poverty are particularly problematic when seen in light of its stance on climate change. In a press release written right before COP28, NJ Ayuk uses some classic misinformation tropes, such as:
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Casting doubt on science: An implication that Al Gore’s former warnings of an “ice-free north pole” show climate science is inaccurate or overstating impacts . This not only relies on a non-expert for predictions (Al Gore is not a scientist), but applies impossible expectations in general, where any past inaccuracy in modelling or data could place all future science in doubt. This framing is commonly seen in climate misinformation.
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Exaggerating progress on climate change: Ayuk states that “things are … not as bad as they seem”. He cherry picks a reduction in emissions in the US since 1990, ignoring that global emissions have increased 60% in that time. Meanwhile he cites a “92% drop in fatalities in natural disasters over the last century”. This metric has been repeatedly discredited as an accurate assessment of the climate crisis.
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An excerpt from the AEC release right before COP.
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Citing the AEC as a ‘voice of the region’ in international media is one thing, but its
impact on regional discourse is perhaps more concerning. Just like in other areas of the world, some do not trust their country’s representatives to deliver the action needed at a national level during COP, leaving a potential sense of hopelessness to an area already feeling the impacts of climate change.
Added to that, a report from Internews’ Earth Journalism Network (EJN) found that two thirds of journalists in East Africa feel the need to “balance” stories between climate science and denial and that many believe switching from fossil fuels to renewables will be “bad for the economy”. As countries such as Saudi Arabia and the UAE seek to buy up land in Africa for carbon credits, the potential for abuse of local resources is also acute.
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Action 1
As EJN’s report makes clear, a greater awareness of the science and impacts of climate change across all journalism is necessary to fight disinformation and fossil fuel influence in Africa. Meanwhile, campaigners must get ahead by championing positive and human-centred climate communications tailored to the right audiences. Research in the UK, for example, has revealed sometimes counter-intuitive ways to present climate arguments effectively.
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Action 2
The AEC’s wide coverage is in part due to the Pan African Communications Consultancy, APO Group. There needs to be more transparency and accountability about PR firms’ and ad agencies’ role in spreading climate misinformation (see below).
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Speaking of PR agencies… Ten agencies working for the UAE and COP28 Presidency from 2021 to 2023 have simultaneously worked on 29
fossil fuel contracts, according to Clean Creatives. Clean Creatives are calling for more public accountability of the third parties that enable the fossil fuel industry to dissinform and greenwash.
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And speaking of the media... Media Matters for America found that on the opening day of COP28, major cable news networks aired just 8 minutes of COP28 coverage in the US - a 97% drop compared to 2021. This is problematic because, as the window for 1.5 degrees rapidly closes, media outlets have a responsibility to report in an engaging, accurate and visible manner on climate change. ‘Climate silence’ makes building a strong mandate for action even harder. It also allows mis- and disinformation to thrive, since bad actors are prolific during this period!
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Welcome to our new regular feature, the greenwashing tracker! The sheer quantity of promotions by the fossil fuel industry is a lot to get your head around
… so we’ve got you covered. Found something particularly interesting? Send it our way at contact@caad.info
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BP’s “And, not or” campaign promoted on YouTube. We also heard a version of this ad as a pre-roll on podcasts in the UK, including on top-ranking shows such as ‘This American Life’.
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ExxonMobil is a “2023 lead sponsor” of ‘Up First’ podcast in the USA. The ad says “The world needs ways to reduce carbon emissions … ExxonMobil
is working on solutions … like carbon capture”.
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The Saudi Green Initiative is promoting its COP28 side event on X. The post now has 1.8 million views
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Shell are promoting a few ads on TikTok including one that says “it starts with a windmill and before you know it you’re building a wind farm”
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ExxonMobil carbon capture storage on podcast pre-rolls, Saudi Green Initiative on X and Shell on TikTok
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BP “And, not or” on Youtube in the UK
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Thanks for reading! Look out for our next spotlight report on Sunday. All about false solutions to the climate crisis … you won’t want to miss
it.
If you have any investigative leads CAAD should explore, or want to find out more about our research and intel during the summit, please email contact@caad.info. We also have team members on the ground in the UAE who are available for interviews and side-events as useful.
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CAAD, www.caad.info, United Kingdom
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