Samia calls for Africa special fund to tackle climate change

She said: “Tanzania, and indeed the rest of Africa, continue to face the unprecedented impact of climate change, with limited capacity to finance mitigation and adaptation needs.”

She stressed that while the international community has made commitments to assist climate change, it is critical to determine how much of those pledges directly benefit African states.

“And thus, as we head for COP28, we have to raise an African voice on the establishment and capitalisation of special funds for Africa, and the contribution and pledge given by the advanced countries have to say what percentage of those pledges goes to Africa and not just blanket pledges,” asserted President Hassan.

The head of state gave her remarks during a presidential session attended by regional leaders, experts, and stakeholders from across the continent to discuss strategies and commitments for addressing the escalating climate crisis. 

Africa is particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change, including droughts, floods, and rising temperatures.

These impacts threaten food security, water resources, and the livelihoods of millions of people across the continent.

“The interplay between climate change and development is undeniable, and this interlink demands integrated and coherent solutions that will provide an opportunity for social and economic development in Africa,” she said. 

President Hassan’s call for a special climate fund for Africa resonated with many leaders and delegates at the Africa Climate Summit, who both called for joint actions towards solving the climate crisis. 

The host, President William Ruto, said the African continent as a whole possesses a principal position for Africa on the climate action agenda, and that should be the foundation of the strategies, institutional, and policy direction. 

President Ruto said that he believes that the continent can build ample capacity to decarbonise global manufacturing and play a vital role in creating green economies both within the continent and globally.

“Africa’s low rate of green gas emissions must not radiate us to the margins and footnotes of the global climate agenda. Africa must step forward as the cornerstone around which effective climate solutions are built,” he said.

The inaugural Africa Climate Summit, championed by President Ruto, aims to address the increasing exposure to climate change and its associated costs.

He said: “The summit is dedicated exclusively to transforming potential into opportunities, the conversion of ideas into action, and the turning of plans into results.

“Creating a firm consensus, designing effective strategies, securing commitment, and forming transformative partnerships that will drive climate action in the direction and at the rate that will be required to pull our continent back from the brink of climate disaster.”

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also stated that the green transition will require an unprecedented scale of private investment and that public finance will not suffice.

“This is true for Europe, but this is also true for emerging markets and developing economies. Private capital will need to be mobilised at scale. And here, green bonds are widely recognised as providing part of the solution,” she said.

This, she said, can be addressed by the newly promoted Global Green Bond Initiative.

Another solution that would unlock huge resources for climate action in Africa would be carbon pricing and true carbon credits that would create revenues to support the clean transition in developing countries.