TheCable

Akinwumi Adesina, president of the African Development Bank Group (AfDB), says Africa will need $2.7 trillion to finance adaptation to climate change by 2030.

Adesina spoke on Monday at the AfDB annual meeting themed “Mobilising private sector financing for climate and green growth in Africa”, held in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt.

The bank president said Africa, which is the world’s lowest emitter of greenhouse gases is “choking” and in dire need of adequate financing to tackle the effects of climate change.

“Anywhere you look in Africa today, climate change is causing havoc. In the Sahel, hotter temperatures are drying up limited water, causing water stress for crops and livestock and worsening food insecurity,” he said.

“We have a loss of people, loss or destruction of infrastructure, and of course, leading to rising numbers of what I call climate-induced refugees.

“Africa loses 7 to 15 billion dollars a year from climate change and that is estimated to rise to $50 billion by 2040 at the current trend.

“But Africa, which accounts for just three percent of the total cumulative emissions in the world, is now suffering disproportionately from the negative consequences of that.

“Africa is being shortchanged by climate finance. Africa is choking. Africa will need $2.7 trillion by 2030 to finance its climate change needs.

“If Africa had that money, the Sahel would have electricity. We would recharge the Chad basin, which has provided livelihoods for millions of people in Chad, Nigeria, Niger and Cameroon.

“Everything will change in all those countries; we will green the Sahel. We will insure every single African country against catastrophic weather events.

“That is why the AfDB, together with the Global Center on Adaptation, launched the African adaptation acceleration program.

“The programme is to mobilise $25 billion of support for climate adaptation in Africa. We devote 63 percent of our climate finance to adaptation.”

The AfDB president also said Africa’s climate finance from the private sector would need to increase by 36 percent yearly, adding that about $213 billion in financing is required.

“There is so much gap to be filled in terms of private sector financing. The opportunities of financing climate and also financing green growth events are in Africa,” Adesina said.

“It’s not just infrastructure, but quality and green infrastructure. We need to prepare bankable projects for the private sector to invest in.”