At 15 years old, Hlelolwenkhosi Nsibandze has challenged African climate negotiators and world leaders to place children’s nutrition at the centre of climate action.
He argued that hungry children cannot be expected to become the leaders of tomorrow.
Addressing the African Group of Negotiators BAGNC on the sidelines of COP31 in Antalya, Türkiye, the Eswatini child delegate drew a direct connection between climate change, food insecurity as well as children’s ability to develop and fulfil their potential.
“As adults, you always say we are the future; but before we are the future, we must have fully developed brains and those brains need food to nourish and develop them,” he told the gathering.
His address followed a special invitation from the AGN chair, making him the first child delegate to be invited to address the usually closed meeting, according to information shared by the World Vision delegation.
Nsibande, a pupil of Evelyn Baring High School, used the platform to call for children to be included in climate decision-making processes, insisting that policies affecting them should not be developed without their participation.
In an interview with TRT News, he highlighted hunger and malnutrition as serious challenges in Eswatini, saying more than half of the country’s children were either poor or malnourished.
He also pointed to the effects of extreme heat and changing weather patterns on agriculture, explaining that farmers were struggling to understand and adapt to changing seasons.
“Most recently heatwaves are the most predominant in the country. Heatwaves struck the whole country for about two weeks,” he said.
He added that limited awareness of climate change among farmers was compounding the problem, recounting how a neighbouring farmer had considered abandoning farming because of the effects of changing climatic conditions.
Nsibande further challenged world leaders to account for commitments made at previous climate conferences, questioning whether promises had translated into meaningful assistance for smaller African countries such as Eswatini.
He said he had asked the AGN chair what commitments from the previous five COP meetings had been fulfilled, noting that the impact of international climate action was not being felt equally across African countries.
He also raised concern about the limited number of African countries with policies specifically addressing child hunger and malnutrition. He told TRT News that his research had identified 23 countries with such policies and said the AGN chair had expressed a desire to increase that number to at least 35 by the next COP.
The young advocate’s participation has also included engagements with senior continental leaders, among them Mozambique President Daniel Chapo, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali and United Nations Economic Commission for Africa Executive Secretary Claver Gatete.
Through his participation, Nsibande has sought to ensure that climate discussions go beyond environmental targets and recognise the everyday realities of children affected by hunger, poverty and climate-related challenges.
Six days, one mission
From the moment he arrived in Antalya, Türkiye, Hlelolwenkhosi Nsibande’s mission at COP31 was clear.
He went there to ensure that the voices of children affected by climate change, hunger and malnutrition were heard where decisions about their future are made.
The young Eswatini delegate’s first days at the global climate conference involved familiarising himself with the proceedings and engaging with representatives from the African Union and other international stakeholders.
His participation quickly moved beyond observation. On the fourth day, he was introduced by African Union Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment Moses Vilakati to several high-profile leaders, including Mozambique President Daniel Chapo, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali and United Nations Economic Commission for Africa Executive Secretary Claver Gatete.
The engagements offered the 15-year-old an opportunity to bring children’s concerns directly to leaders shaping Africa’s climate resilience agenda.
One of his biggest moments came when the chair of the African Group of Negotiators invited him to address the group, which normally holds closed discussions. Nsibande became the first child delegate to receive such an invitation, sharing the platform with a child advocate from Somalia.
His message was simple but pointed: children cannot be called the future while their immediate needs, particularly access to adequate food and nutrition remain unmet.
He also used a one-on-one interview with TRT News to highlight the situation in Eswatini, speaking about hunger, malnutrition, extreme heat and the difficulties facing farmers as weather patterns change.
His engagements continued as he challenged leaders to ensure that children were not merely invited to climate conferences for appearances, but were meaningfully involved in decisions affecting them.
Nsibande’s contribution also coincided with the launch of World Vision’s Hungry Futures Index 2.0, which brought renewed attention to the relationship between climate policies and child hunger.
At a World Vision press briefing, he urged governments to recognise that children’s access to food must be part of the climate response.
His journey to COP31 followed an official send-off in Eswatini on November 6, where Deputy Prime Minister Thuli Dladla challenged him to carry the hopes and concerns of children across the country and the region to the international platform.
By the end of his first six days, Nsibande had moved from being a young delegate observing a global conference to becoming a voice heard in high-level African climate discussions.
The Form II learner is also World Vision Eswatini ENOUGH Campaign ambassador.
