CAPE TOWN  – The iconic Greenpeace ship, Rainbow Warrior, has docked in Cape Town and opened its door to the public as part of a campaign challenging fossil fuel expansion and plastic pollution in African waters, while mobilising public support to defend ocean and climate justice. The vessel’s open days, which run Friday 23rd to Sunday 25th, invite Capetonians aboard to witness firsthand the tactical capabilities of a ship purpose-built to confront fossil fuel corporations operating beyond public sight.

The Rainbow Warrior’s presence in Cape Town comes at a critical juncture as multinational corporations, including TotalEnergies, continue aggressive oil and gas exploration off African coastlines, threatening marine ecosystems, fishing communities, and accelerating the climate crisis that African nations contribute least to but suffer most from.

“This ship’s arrival in African water is as symbolic as it is tactical,” said Siyabonga Myeza, Climate and Energy Campaigner at Greenpeace Africa. “TotalEnergies and other fossil fuel majors operate in African waters because they believe they are beyond accountability. The Rainbow Warrior changes that equation. We can reach them. We can document their destruction. And we can mobilise the global pressure needed to stop them. Cape Town has always been at the forefront of climate action. This week, we’re inviting the city to join a movement that has the tools to fight back.”

Unlike conventional protest efforts, the Rainbow Warrior represents operational infrastructure designed to break the invisibility advantage that fossil fuel companies rely on. Where drilling rigs operate far from shore and beyond media attention, the ship creates sustained physical presence, real-time documentation, and witness capabilities that hold polluters accountable.

With plastic pollution and climate breakdown devastating African coastal economies, the organisation is calling for systemic change that cuts pollution at the source.

“African waters are being treated as sacrifice zones by corporations that would never dare operate this way in their home countries,” said Sherelee Odayar, Oil and Gas Campaigner at Greenpeace Africa. “The Rainbow Warrior embodies our refusal to accept that status quo. From oil spills to plastic waste, the environmental crimes happening off our coasts require a movement with teeth—one that can physically intervene, gather evidence, and support communities demanding justice. This ship makes that possible.”

The Rainbow Warrior’s Cape Town stop is funded entirely by individual donations from citizens who refuse to accept corporate impunity. Unlike industry-backed operations, Greenpeace takes no money from governments or corporations, ensuring the organisation remains accountable only to people and planet. The ship tour offers Capetonians an opportunity to support infrastructure that defends African sovereignty on the high seas. 

“Most people don’t realise that environmental resistance requires real resources, such as ships, crews, legal teams, investigative capacity,” said Meshack Mofolo, Direct Dialogue Manager at Greenpeace Africa. “The Rainbow Warrior exists because thousands of ordinary people decided they wanted to fund something powerful. This week, we’re inviting Capetonians to own a piece of this resistance. Your contribution doesn’t go into a black hole; it underwrites every voyage this ship makes into contested waters, every campaign that stops a destructive project, every moment we hold polluters accountable. Cape Town has always been a city that refuses to look away. Now we’re offering you the means to act.”

Visitors to the Rainbow Warrior will have the opportunity to tour the ship, meet crew members and campaigners, and sign petitions demanding stronger ocean protection and an end to fossil fuel expansion in African waters. Greenpeace Africa aims to mobilise over 2,500 Capetonians into active participants in the climate justice movement during the ship’s five-day visit.

Rainbow Warrior Public Open Days:

  • Dates: 24-25 January 2026
  • Location: V&A Waterfront, Cape Town
  • Time: 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM
  • Registration: 

Media Contact:

Ferdinand Omondi, Communications Lead, East and Southern Africa, Greenpeace Africa, Email: [email protected], Phone/Whatsapp: +254 722 505 233

Greenpeace Africa Press Desk: [email protected] 

-ENDS-

Notes to Editors:

About Greenpeace Africa

Greenpeace Africa is an independent campaigning organization that uses peaceful direct action and creative communication to expose global environmental problems and promote solutions essential to a green and peaceful future. Greenpeace Africa is funded entirely by individual donations and does not accept money from governments or corporations.

About the Rainbow Warrior

The Rainbow Warrior is a purpose-built campaigning vessel with advanced communication systems, small boat deployment capabilities, and endurance to operate in remote waters for extended periods. It has a 40-year legacy of frontline environmental defence, from confronting nuclear testing in the Pacific to challenging illegal fishing and now fossil fuel expansion in African waters.