Codifying human security : achieving social justice in an age of climate crisis

Abstract

Many countries in sub-Saharan Africa are yet to translate constitutional guarantees of socio-economic and environmental rights into climate-resilient and socially just policies that are both. Most fiscal and sectoral frameworks privilege macroeconomic stability and elite interests, often at the expense of inclusive growth, food security, environmental protection, and human security. Reliance on rain-fed agriculture, extractive industries, and policy incoherence in sectors such as agriculture, land use, and energy leaves communities vulnerable to climate shocks. Emerging opportunities in carbon finance hold promise; however, weak regulation, limited institutional capacity, and the risks of elite capture pose serious obstacles. Through a doctrinal and analytical review of constitutional law, judicial cases, policy documents, and recent developments in social justice (including carbon market initiatives), this article argues for a constitutionally grounded and rights-based model of human security and social justice. Such a model would embed transparency, public participation, and equity in social justice policies, including environmental justice. Focusing on the environmental justice dimension of social justice, the central thesis is that climate change serves as a threat multiplier, undermining the right to adequate food and nutrition, and thereby deepening human insecurity and systemic vulnerability. To achieve climate justice, food sovereignty, and sustainable development, all right-bearers — including states, corporations, and individuals — must be held accountable and must exercise their duties responsibly and sustainably. The contributions are twofold: first, analytically diagnosing the structural, legal, and institutional disconnects undermining human security and social justice in a changing climate; and second, recommending socio-economic policy reforms grounded in constitutional rights, transparency, institutional coherence, and participatory governance to achieve human security and social justice.