AFRICAN UNION COMMISSION
INFORMATION & COMMUNICATION DIRECTORATE
Press Release No: 025/2024 Date: 26th February 2024
Venue: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
African leaders call on global community to honour climate commitments.
African heads of state and prominent personalities called for greater action on the climate crisis for climate-responsive agri-food systems and economic growth in Africa.
The call was made at a high-level event on Climate Finance for Agriculture and Food Security: Implementation of the Nairobi Declaration and Outcomes of the UNFCCC COP28 held on 16 February 2024 at Skylight Hotel, Addis Ababa, in the margins of the 37th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union.
Delegates highlighted the critical need for increasing climate finance in support of climate-responsive agrifood systems to withstand climate-related challenges and foster economic growth in Africa at the well attended event hosted by the African Union Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment in collaborating with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the Government of the Republic of Uganda.
Leaders called upon the global community to honour the commitments made at COP15 to provide Africa with resources to address the climate crisis, a pledge that was further advanced during the Inaugural Africa Climate Summit (ACS) held in Nairobi, Kenya in September 2023 and COP28 in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in December 2023. The latter commitments upheld the notion that Africa needs to accelerate all efforts to reduce emissions to align with the goals of the Paris Agreement to limit global warming to 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, and preferably 1.5 degrees Celsius.
Kenyan President William Ruto in his keynote address observed that resources required to cope with and respond to climate change will continue to rise exponentially into trillions of dollars. For Africa, as the climate impact worsens and becomes more expensive to deal with, investment priorities must be directed into adaptation, especially in attaining food sovereignty. “The collaboration between FAO and our continent, will significantly help Africa to cope with the climate crises, so innovative approaches and new collaborations across our countries, within our region are essential, as we also focus on eliminating trade barriers that impede the movement of goods and services across our borders,” noted the President.
Mass migration due to climate related hazards and associated hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition are increasingly becoming a common phenomenon, said Frank Tumwebaze, Minister for Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries of Uganda, in complementing President Ruto’s statements.
The Minister stressed that “African countries must scale up adaptation and resilience measures with mitigation as a co-benefit in the implementation of the Paris Agreement.”
H.E Ambassador Josefa Leonel Correia Sacko, Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy, and Sustainable Environment (DARBE), in a message delivered on behalf of H. E. Moussa Faki Mahamat, Chairperson of the African Union Commission, noted that even when Africa is not proportionally responsible for global emissions, African countries suffer disproportionately due to limited resources for mitigation and adaptation to climate change.
“It has been estimated that allocating funds for climate change adaptation in the agrifood systems of Africa offers a more cost-effective approach compared to financing emergency response, including disaster relief, and recovery efforts due to increasingly frequent and severe crises. The estimated cost per year of adaptation measures in Africa amounts to approximately USD 15 billion. This figure represents only a fraction of the potential costs associated with inaction, which could soar to over USD 201 billion by 2050,” said the Chairperson.
Despite Africa’s low contribution to global greenhouse gas emissions, the region suffers greatly from the adverse impacts of climate change. In 2020 alone, USD 30 billion was lost due to declines in crop and livestock production caused by extreme weather events and disasters, severely impacting rural livelihoods and exacerbating hunger, affecting 20.2 percent or 278 million people said Maria Helena Semedo, FAO Deputy Director-General, who spoke on behalf of FAO Director-General QU Dongyu.
“While agrifood systems possess the potential to deliver climate solutions, the lack of incentives is threatening climate adaptation efforts. Strong collaborations can secure the future Africa’s agrifood systems, nourish its people, and simultaneously preserve its natural resources,” noted Semedo.
Climate financing in Africa
Participants at the event reiterated that Africa is not historically responsible for global warming, but bears the brunt of its effects, impacting lives, livelihoods, and economies. Despite this fact, African countries continue to face disproportionate burdens and risks arising from climate change-related weather events and patterns.
Prolonged droughts, devastating floods, out-of-season storms and wildfires are causing massive humanitarian crises with detrimental impacts on agrifood systems.
The Africa Climate Summit in September 2023 served as a significant platform for African leaders and stakeholders to emphasize the imperative of decarbonizing the global economy for equality and shared prosperity. The resulting Nairobi Declaration on climate finance and call to action now form the cornerstone of Africa’s unified stance in the global climate change process.
The COP28 in UAE last year yielded promising outcomes for Africa. Countries agreed to operationalize the Loss and Damage Fund, pledging approximately USD 661.39 million —an essential milestone, given the agrifood sectors’ vulnerability to climate-induced loss and damage.
While agreeing that climate finance in agrifood systems is on the decline and grossly inadequate in Africa, several speakers identified key finance, policy, innovation, and knowledge interventions that will enhance climate finance and adaptation in agri-food systems in Africa and also improve the livelihoods of local farmers and food producers.
Noting that the implementation period of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) is drawing to an end by 2025, the African Union Commission also launched the structures for operationalizing the post-Malabo process at the event. The case and structures were presented by H.E Josefa Sacko, Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy, and Sustainable Environment (DARBE) while H.E Frank Tumwembaze, Minister of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries of Uganda and the Chairperson of the Specialised Technical Committee of Agriculture Rural Development, Water and Environment (ARDWE) officially launched the process.
For further information, please contact:
Dr. Janet Edeme I Head of Division for Rural Development and Ag. Head of Division for Agriculture and Food Security, Division I Directorate of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARBE) I African Union Commission I Email: EdemeJ@africa-union.org
Prof. Afeikhena Theo Jerome I Special Advisor to the Commissioner I Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment I African Union Commission I Email: jeromea@africa-union.org
For media inquiries, please contact:
Ms. Peace Lydia Mutuwa I Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment I African Union Commission I Email: mutuwap@africa-union.org
Mr. Molalet Tsedeke I Information and Communications Directorate I African Union Commission I Tel: 0911-630631 I Email: molalett@africa-union.org I Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Ms. Tezeta Hailemeskel I FAO Eastern Africa Communications I Email: Tezeta.Hailemeskel@fao.org
Mr. Abebe D. Banjaw I FAO Eastern Africa Communication I Email: Abebe.Banjaw@fao.org
Ms. Zoie Jones I FAO Regional Office for Africa Communications I Email: Zoie.Jones@fao.org
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