The injustice of just transitions: How the neglect of the green division of labour cements African dependencies

Abstract

Just transition discussions have been mainstreamed within global climate policy. Yet ‘just transition’ discussions have often overlooked production-based inequities. This paper argues that reducing attention to production inequities contributes to sustaining rent capture among European, North American and East Asian firms while reducing space for rents being used to enhance economic autonomy in African countries. ‘Just transition’ discussions are overshadowing how African countries have been adversely incorporated into the green division of labour in two ways, thereby reducing possibilities for effective rent management. First, African countries depend on the imports of solar panels, wind turbines and most other renewable energy technologies. Second, despite continued African hopes to invest in processing critical minerals, there remains inadequate assistance forthcoming from North America, Europe or East Asia. Instead, ‘Just transition’ advocates have focused on inequities associated with labour and loss of land, placing the onus on African countries to solve their own labour injustices resulting from energy transitions. While there is limited funding available to address within-country injustices, the anti-productivist bias within just transition discussions fail to address inter-country injustices either. Advocacy and momentum around ‘just transitions’ has side-lined attention to the injustice of Africa's adverse incorporation into the green division of labour.