ACCESS4ALL Group

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) used its natural resources, both oil reserves and vast rainforests, as strategic leverage in global climate negotiations. The 2022 oil and gas auction was less about genuine fossil fuel development and more a political signal. In threatening potential environmental harm in ecologically sensitive areas, the DRC highlighted the financial risks of continued underinvestment in climate action. This tactic drew global attention to the country’s climate vulnerability and its need for substantial climate finance.

Multilateral coordination significantly strengthened the DRC’s bargaining power. Through REDD+ and the Coalition for Rainforest Nations, the DRC pushed for recognition of sovereign carbon credits, ultimately securing their inclusion in the COP27 implementation plan. Its alliance with Brazil and Indonesia, the so‑called “OPEC for rainforests”, further amplified its influence by uniting over half of the world’s remaining tropical forests under a shared negotiating agenda. Engagement with the Least Developed Countries (LDC) Group also ensured that African priorities, especially loss and damage, shaped the COP27 agenda.

Loss and damage were central to the DRC’s strategy. As one of the world’s lowest emitters but among the most climate‑vulnerable nations, the DRC used the auction to underscore the cost of inaction. Using the framing of its situation within global climate injustice, the DRC strengthened the case for predictable, long‑term climate finance and compensation for climate‑related harms.

Ethically, the strategy raises difficult questions. Leveraging the threat of environmental destruction can appear coercive, yet it reflects the structural inequities facing Global South countries. Wealthy nations demand conservation but often fail to provide adequate financial support. Within climate principles, the DRC’s approach can be seen as a pragmatic response to broken climate finance promises and a way to assert agency in an unequal global system.