IPI Demands Stronger Protection for Africa’s Climate Reporters

The International Press Institute (IPI) has called for stronger protection for journalists reporting on climate and environmental issues in Africa, and for guaranteed public access to climate and environmental information, in a statement marking the International Day of Climate Action.

IPI also urged African states to counter abusive litigation against reporters and to guarantee access to information as part of their climate commitments, including the African Union Agenda 2063 and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Independent climate reporting, IPI said, helps the public understand the effects of climate change, exposes their underlying drivers, and supports responses that fit local conditions. Displacement, food insecurity, health problems and avoidable loss of life are among the effects the statement links to climate change.

At least 58 journalists affected in one year

IPI’s Africa climate and environmental journalism programme documented attacks and violations affecting at least 58 climate and environmental journalists between March 2025 and March 2026, according to the statement.

The statement gives two cases from March 2026. On 4 March 2026, authorities arrested and detained Somali journalist Mohamed Saleban Ahmed, also known as Suute, for two days after a report that discussed drought conditions in the Sool and Sanaag regions. In the same month, authorities arrested and detained two Tanzanian broadcasters, Nobert Hongoli and Wolter John Mbaga, over their reporting on floods; they were accused of publishing news that caused public alarm. Their report described rising water levels in a local dam, residents’ fears of flooding, and calls for government intervention.

IPI also documented a growing use of Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) and other forms of judicial harassment against climate and environmental journalists in Africa. Such lawsuits are brought to burden or silence reporting on matters of public interest, rather than to settle a genuine legal dispute.

Access to information remains difficult

Even where access-to-information laws exist, journalists still struggle to obtain climate and environmental information, IPI said. In June 2026, a journalist reported that the Ghana Meteorological Agency charged him high fees after he filed an information request under Ghana’s Right to Information Act.

IPI’s report, Access to Climate and Environmental Information: Challenges for Journalists in Six African Countries, examined Cameroon, Ghana, Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mozambique and South Africa. It found that access remained inconsistent even in countries with access-to-information laws, with fragmented or hard-to-search information, delays, and slow review mechanisms. Where public records were unavailable, journalists had to rely on communities, civil society, leaked documents, satellite imagery and field reporting, which increased the cost and risks of their work.

The statement points to ClimaTracker, a geo-mapping and data journalism tool developed by the Oxpeckers Center for Investigative Environmental Journalism, as an example of why independent reporting and reliable information matter. By tracking weather changes, modelling scientific data and documenting effects on local communities and food security in Southern Africa, ClimaTracker makes complex climate information accessible and shows the links between environmental change, food systems and livelihoods.

International commitments and African action

At COP30 in November 2025, countries adopted the Declaration on Information Integrity on Climate Change, recognising the importance of reliable, evidence-based information for public participation, accountability and effective climate action. The declaration commits signatories to support a diverse and resilient media ecosystem, safeguard environmental journalists, and promote transparency and access to public climate and environmental data. IPI notes that of the 29 signatories, only two are African countries: Mauritius and Seychelles.

The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights has also acted. A resolution adopted in October 2026 condemns reprisals, attacks, criminalisation and judicial harassment against environmental human rights defenders and calls on states to adopt prevention and protection measures and ensure prompt, independent and effective investigation, accountability and access to remedies. An earlier resolution, adopted in March 2026, calls on states to promote access to information for journalists through legislative, administrative, judicial and other measures.

Related climate coverage from Watan News International can be read in the report on Canada’s carbon markets working group.

FAKTA

• Who: The International Press Institute (IPI), a global press-freedom network.
• What: A call for stronger protection for Africa’s climate reporters and guaranteed access to climate and environmental information.
• When: A statement marking the International Day of Climate Action, published on 23 October 2026.
• Scale: At least 58 climate and environmental journalists affected by attacks and violations between March 2025 and March 2026, as documented by IPI’s Africa programme.
• Access report: Six countries examined — Cameroon, Ghana, Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mozambique and South Africa.
• Global commitment: The COP30 Declaration on Information Integrity on Climate Change has 29 signatories, of which only Mauritius and Seychelles are African.

Frequently asked questions

What is the International Press Institute?

The International Press Institute is a global network of journalists committed to media freedom. According to IPI, its network has worked for over 75 years to bring journalists together in support of press freedom.

How many climate journalists were affected?

IPI’s Africa programme documented attacks and violations affecting at least 58 climate and environmental journalists between March 2025 and March 2026.

What are SLAPPs?

SLAPPs are Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation: legal actions used to burden, intimidate or silence reporting on matters of public interest. IPI documented their growing use against climate and environmental journalists in Africa.

Which countries did IPI’s access-to-information report cover?

The report covered Cameroon, Ghana, Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mozambique and South Africa, and found access inconsistent even where access-to-information laws exist.

What did the COP30 information-integrity declaration commit countries to?

The declaration commits signatories to support a diverse and resilient media ecosystem, safeguard environmental journalists, and promote transparency and access to public climate and environmental data. It has 29 signatories, including only two African countries, Mauritius and Seychelles.

Protecting the reporters who document climate change is part of protecting the public’s right to know. When journalists can work safely and obtain official information, communities can understand the risks they face and hold decision-makers to account.