From Awareness to Conciliation: Education and Policy Coherence between Environmental Issues and Development Imperatives in Africa

Given the imperative for holistic development (e.g., economic, technology, infrastructure) and the well-being of African populations, this article examines the consequences of incoherent public policies in Africa. These incoherencies are further compounded by environmental and climatic constraints, which are frequently exacerbated by the ratification of international agreements that are incompatible with local priorities. International organizations and frameworks, such as the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), advocate for the importance of sensitization and education as key strategies for addressing environmental and climate challenges. Despite the considerable potential of education, the awareness-raising strategy employed by numerous countries has been relatively ineffective in yielding tangible outcomes. The objective of this article is to demonstrate how an education program that prioritizes conciliation over awareness-raising can more effectively tackle Africa’s development challenges by fostering policy coherence between environmental sustainability and development imperatives. By diverging from the conventional awareness-raising models, this study presents a contextual and comprehensive approach that respects local particularities and is better aligned with addressing environmental and climate crises.