Children and young people from Nigeria and 13 other countries across the world are demanding better access to climate education, more funding for climate-resilient infrastructure and a seat at the table with their voices heard as the annual climate conference, COP28, taking place in Dubai, UAE, opened weekend in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates.
The requests were voiced during national 'COP simulations organised by Save the Children and its partners. Young people from the countries shared their views with key decision-makers ahead of the annual climate conference taking place from 30 November until 12 December.
Children decried the neglect of their concerns in the climate change agenda and called for inclusiveness in the climate emergency political agenda.
Across the simulations, many children asked their governments to include climate education on the national curriculum, so they are equipped with knowledge about climate change, its effects and how to address it. Many requested better infrastructure to make school buildings and communities safer.
In Rwanda, children decried floods and mudslides preventing them from going to school or accessing health facilities.
"When there is heavy rain, children don't manage to go to school...it causes mudslides. Then our parents start struggling to get school fees and this results in school dropouts," they said.
In Zambia, extreme weather events like drought, have also impacted their access to education.
"When there is a drought, we children don't go to school because we must search for water," their joint letter read.
Every year, extreme weather events interrupt learning for about 40 million children, a figure likely to rise as the intensity and frequency increase due to climate change.
Zambian children asked their delegation to protect their access to water services, by investing in practical solutions, like drilling boreholes and water harvesting. "We also want to see sustainable infrastructure that can survive floods and droughts," they said.
"Our voice is important, listen to us. We want to ask the authorities to seriously think about the value we have as children, and the future we deserve," the group in Guatemala said.
A group in Madagascar said: "Because of the cyclones, the water level is rising so we can't go to school. We're asking for a bridge so that we can cross over and get to school."
In Nigeria, children said money should go towards new facilities that have "flood-resistant materials, adequate drainage systems, and alternative energy sources".
Investment in infrastructure tailored to children's needs is vital to help communities adapt to the climate crisis. However, children's rights are often overlooked when it comes to climate finance.
Save the Children CEO, Inger Ashing, said: "The climate crisis is at its heart a child rights crisis. It's taking lives, eroding children's rights and threatening their future. Children's calls for action pushed the climate emergency up the political agenda. Now, adults must step up and support children to implement their ideas for a better future. Children want to be heard. "We need to ensure a focus on children's rights, based on children's views and recommendations, in climate negotiations, policies and financing at all levels."
Save the Children is urging world leaders at COP28, particularly those from high-income countries and historical emitters, to increase climate finance, directing support to children and families for adaptation to the climate crisis and addressing losses and damages.
Governments must recognise children as key agents of change and work urgently to limit temperature rise to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels,' Ashing noted.
A recent report by Save the Children and partners found that just 2.4 percent of climate finance from four key global climate funds can be classified as sufficiently considering children, although some funders - like the Green Climate Fund - are actively working to bridge these gaps.
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
Many children highlighted the knock-on effects of climate change, explaining how it impacted their families' crops, sources of income, food security and overall health.
In Madagascar, children said: "Our parents have difficulty finding enough to feed us. Not only are the crops destroyed, but we also don't have enough money to keep going to school or to be treated when we fall ill."
Zambian children said this often impacted adults' mental health, adding: "Too many people are stressed when it doesn't rain, or it rains too much because their crops and things get destroyed."
In Guatemala children asked authorities "to support the implementation of projects that generate agricultural production, as this helps to combat hunger and malnutrition, in addition to increasing food security".
