The Second Youth Forum on Adaptation Finance in Africa (YOFAFA2024) commenced on October 29 at the Franco Hotel, attracting a diverse assembly of young individuals and the presence of H.E Jean-Marc Châtainier, the European Union Ambassador to Cameroon. As with the previous edition, this forum aims to equip these young people with the necessary skills to navigate the complexities of climate financing.
Africa faces significant challenges in accessing energy and building resilience to climate change’s impacts. A substantial portion of the population, particularly in rural areas, lacks access to modern energy services, impeding economic development and adaptation efforts. Climate change exacerbates this issue by disrupting energy systems and increasing energy demands for cooling and other adaptation needs.
The Challenge of Financing:
Financing is a major hurdle, with limited public funds and private investments deterred by perceived risks and the lack of enabling policies. “We need a youth that masters the intricacies of climate financing; we must adapt to the vagaries of climate financing, and young people play an important role,” declared Dr.Augustine Njamnshi.
Africa faces a severe and urgent deficit in climate adaptation financing, as the costs of delayed action continue to rise. A cumulative analysis of the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) from 51 African countries indicates an estimated need for $579 billion in adaptation financing by 2030. However, this would require a significantly higher annual expenditure than the $11.4 billion tracked on average in Africa in 2019 and 2020. The majority of adaptation financing currently comes from the public sector.
Insufficient Current Flows:
The current flows of adaptation financing in Africa are insufficient to meet the growing adaptation needs on the continent. The impacts of climate change in Africa are exacerbated by rapid urbanization, geopolitical tensions, and the impacts of global shocks such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing war in Ukraine. Rising prices of energy, food, and other commodities have heightened climate-related risks to food security and energy access for the African population.
Despite these challenges, there is a significant opportunity for climate investments in Africa to foster long-term resilience and low-carbon development. Adaptation financing represented approximately 39% of the total climate financing tracked in Africa between 2019 and 2020. Furthermore, the share of adaptation financing as a percentage of total climate financing was higher in Africa than in any other region for 2019-2020. Due to the cross-sectoral nature of adaptation projects, a large portion of adaptation financing commitments tracked in Africa in 2019-2020 was dedicated to cross-sectoral activities (41%, $4.7 billion), which included support for national-level policies and capacity building, disaster management activities, COVID-19 response, urban issues, and social security.
A Call for Action:
“With the consequences of climate change, such as floods and drought, the question of financing is paramount,” stated H.E Jean Marc Châtainier, the European Union Ambassador to Cameroon. It is crucial to train young individuals who can make financing requests, develop projects, and submit them, as there is a growing need for financing, and it is also necessary to build the capacity to make funding requests.
