the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program (AAAP) hosted a session titled “AAAP: Transformative Adaptation to Accelerate and Scale Up Climate Action” at the virtual Gobeshona Global Conference on March 29. The session focused on policy changes, enabling environment, financing, community engagement and private sector involvement to accelerate and scale up climate adaptation in Africa.

The session brought together policy makers, sustainable financiers, climate resilience experts and youth advocates to discuss the latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) which requires increased speed and scale in the implementation of adaptation actions.

“The impacts of climate change are already happening, faster and more severely than previous IPCC reports indicated,” said Dr. Rebecca Carter, acting director of the climate resilience practice at the World Resources Institute, preparing the field for the session. “This new report clearly shows that we are already facing irreversible loss and damage to human societies and ecosystems around the world,” Carter added.

Teacher. Philip Antwi-Agyei, associate professor at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology and lead author of IPCC special report on the impacts of global warming of 1.5°C said there is a need to integrate indigenous knowledge with scientific knowledge to develop the most effective adaptation interventions and solutions. Farmers use indigenous knowledge to predict drought and rainfall and this knowledge is important for adaptation measures, Antwo-Agyei added.

Zambian Ministry of Green Economy and Environment official Chitembo Kawimbe Chunga said adaptation should be mainstreamed into local and national development plans.

She added that there are adaptation laws, policies and regulations in Zambia that show where and how to adapt. Zambia is working with development partners, including the African Development Bank, to explore best practices for adaptation and building resilience within communities. Chunga is also the national coordinator for the Transforming Landscapes for Resilience and Development and Zambia Strengthening Climate Resilience projects.

The audience followed presentations on different sources of finance, including green bonds and blended finance to mobilize finance for adaptation.

According to Peter Wamicwe, sustainable finance specialist at CGIAR, “Investors need to come in large numbers and focus on different areas. Some may focus on financial returns while others on environmental and social impact.”

Packing together different types of investors can reduce risk and have an impact, Wamicwe said.

AAAP – a joint initiative of the African Development Bank and the Global Center on Adaptation – aims to mobilize $25 billion to boost adaptation across the African continent to boost food security for at least 10 million people. people, supporting one million young people with entrepreneurial skills and job creation, and integrating climate resilience into approximately $7 billion in infrastructure investments, among other outcomes.

Speaking at the session, the Senior Director for Africa at the Global Center on Adaptation, Professor Anthony Nyong, said the AAAP is a strong response to another crisis: climate change.

“What is crucial is that this program is an Africa-owned and Africa-led response to the continent’s vulnerabilities and opportunities,” Nyong said.

During a panel discussion on the role of young people in climate adaptation, Aramide Abe, Regional Director, Youth Jobs and Entrepreneurship, Global Center on Adaptation, said young people have been resourceful in finding adaptation solutions.

She added that youth-led start-ups on the continent are creating solutions and mobilizing funding, and that “AAAP is supporting youth-led businesses on the continent to avoid the ‘valley of death’ the majority of businesses on the continent due to a lack of skills and funding.”

Alphaxard Gitau, a young dairy farmer in Kenya and market value chain specialist, said that even if finance is available, it must be structured to meet the needs of young people.

Panelists recommended putting adaptation finance in the hands of those who bear the brunt of climate change. They called for the use of a mix of public and private finance to target and adapt interventions and to harness the potential of young people in practical ways to effect change, and to scale up and support adaptation actions in all areas.

Click on here to view a recording of the session