African Union Commissioner Warns: Africa’s Climate Finance Meets Only 12% of Its Needs
The African Union (AU) Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy, and Sustainable Environment, Moses Vilakati, has expressed concern that annual climate finance flows to Africa amount to just $30 billion, covering only 12% of the continent’s needs.
Speaking at an event dedicated to the upcoming 2nd African Climate Summit, scheduled for September in Addis Ababa, the Commissioner pointed out that African countries require an estimated $250 billion per year from 2020 to 2030 to meet their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) as outlined in the Paris Agreement.
“Climate finance in Africa falls far short of what is needed,” he emphasized.
He further stressed that Africa is the most severely affected region by the impacts of climate change, despite contributing only 4% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
The continent is facing unprecedented collateral damage, threatening its fragile economies and undermining investments in critical infrastructure. Key systems such as access to clean water and food security are under intense pressure, triggering cascading effects on public health and the sustainability of agriculture, Vilakati warned.
If these challenges are not addressed, Africa risks falling into deeper levels of extreme poverty, which would jeopardize progress made across multiple social and economic fronts, he added.
Source: hespress
