Africa urges wealthy nations for $50 billion annual climate support amid rising crises

The African Union (AU) has called on wealthy nations for urgent financial support to help the continent cope with the worsening impacts of climate change, as leaders opened their second continental climate summit in Addis Ababa on Monday.

Speaking at the event, AU Commission (AUC) Chair Mahmoud Ali Youssouf said Africa’s exposure to climate shocks, such as droughts and floods, was undermining development and driving migration and insecurity.

He urged industrialised nations, whose emissions have fueled global warming for more than a century, to honour their pledges to fund Africa’s adaptation efforts, emphasising that the challenge cannot be addressed without fresh investments.

"Today, the link between climate and underdevelopment is no longer in doubt. Climate, rural exodus, migration and instability in all its forms are intertwined," Mahmoud said in his opening remarks, according to AFP.

"The vulnerability of our member countries caused by climate change... must be redressed through climate justice and genuine cooperation for the implementation of our continent's adaptation plans by providing financial resources, technology and expertise."

His remarks set the tone for the three-day summit, following the 2022 Nairobi Declaration, which also called for greater financial support but delivered little change.

Highlighting the growing funding gap, a report by Oxfam and IGAD last week revealed that the bloc’s eight member states received only $1.7 billion (Sh219.5 billion) a year in climate finance between 2013 and 2022—just four per cent of what they need to implement their climate action plans.

The urgency of Africa’s call is underscored by data from the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), which shows that extreme weather is already taking a heavy toll on the continent.

Each year, African countries lose between two and five per cent of their GDP to droughts, floods, and other climate shocks, while some governments are forced to spend up to nine per cent of their budgets on emergency responses.

In sub-Saharan Africa, the WMO warns that adapting to climate change will cost between $30 billion and $50 billion (Sh3.8 trillion to Sh6.8 trillion) annually over the next decade.

Other Topics To Read

• Africa
• climate change
• floods
• African Union
• AU
• AU Commission
• droughts Africa
• AUC Chair Mahmoud Ali Youssouf
• Africa climate support
• Africa urges wealthy nations for $50 billion annual climate support amid rising crises
• Headlines