Africa’s climate vulnerability is well-recognised. With 30 of the world’s 40 most climate-vulnerable countries in Africa, it is right we should give prominence to the state of green finance in Africa, especially with the crucial COP26 conference just around the corner. Despite the need, Africa receives less than 3% of climate finance and updated NDCs from Africa now point to a massive funding gap which funding and technical partnerships urgently need to fill. On the positive side, Africa is also a continent of innovation and opportunity – let’s not forget that by 2050 Africa will be home to a quarter of the world’s population. And there are international investors, especially those managing ESG funds, who say they are looking for green projects in Africa.
For so many reasons, Africa needs to be at the centre of the global debate on climate finance. And the risks, but also the opportunities, of investing in Africa’s green economy need to be better understood.
In this session, we offer a range of different perspectives – from across Africa and from the UK; from a regulator, a financial adviser and different kinds of investors. What we hear is that Africa is on the move on green finance but there is a lot more work to do. And there are real market constraints that make it very challenging for African institutions to make net-zero commitments in the way many institutions are making them in advanced economies.
