Dear President Emmanuel Macron,

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As we approach the upcoming Summit for a New Global Financing Pact, we have come together as African civil society organisations to issue a call to world leaders and leading international financial institutions to demand transformative climate finance commitments for the resilience of African nations at the Paris Summit. The summit comes at a time when African CSOs are calling for concerted efforts in building Africa's resilience in the face of the ongoing climate emergency. As the impacts of climate change intensify, Africa’s ability to adapt and build resilience for its people through sustainable solutions and adequate support is a key priority. However, even where strong adaptation efforts exist, African countries, under all warming scenarios, face irreversible losses and damage due to climate impacts, which must be addressed. By taking proactive steps, we can mitigate the adverse effects and ensure a resilient future for Africa and its people.

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Africa, with its rich biodiversity and diverse ecosystems, is particularly vulnerable to the consequences of climate change. Any conversation about the climate crisis in Africa is incomplete if it doesn't consider how it disproportionately harms disadvantaged communities in Africa who are least responsible for the climate crisis, and yet most vulnerable to its impacts. Extreme weather events, water scarcity, rising sea levels, heightened conflict, climate induced refugees, and food insecurity due to the disruption of agricultural patterns pose significant challenges and risks to the continent. 

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To address these challenges and build resilience, we would like to emphasise the following key points:

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1. Reset and Enhance Climate Finance Options:

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Scaled-up, grant based or concessionale, and accessible climate finance is crucial for Africa's resilience-building efforts. We must ensure that climate financing mechanisms are accessible to African nations, including through the new financial arrangements and funds agreed upon at COP27. The climate finance Africa receives must truly be additional money and not create new unsustainable debts, as the continent responds to the climate crisis. 

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In line with the Common But Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities (CBDR-RC) principle, Global North countries have a responsibility to repay colonial and climate debt for centuries of historical damage and extractivism across the continent. An array of financing options exist that are more favourable to Africa and must be considered, including debt write-offs and grant based or highly concessional financing. These options, in comparison to more loans and further debt, would enable countries to focus their resources on priority needs. Additionally, the full operationalisation and capitalisation of the recently established Loss and Damage Fund will provide crucial support to African countries in managing and recovering from climate-related losses and damages.

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2. Boost Adaptation Finance:

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For far too long, climate adaptation has been sidelined to mitigation issues in multilateral climate agendas, resulting in a large finance gap and efforts that have largely been reactive, incremental, and piecemeal. Ahead of the Global Stocktake at COP28 in Dubai, the Global Goal on Adaptation, which has seen limited progress and support, requires far more political momentum and traction towards agreement on global science based targets for enhancing adaptation and resilience.

 

With climate impacts in Africa expected to increase in frequency and intensity, addressing the adaptation financing gap to the continent demands immediate attention. The African continent is currently facing substantial and escalating costs due to adverse climate impacts from a crisis it did not cause. Recent extreme weather events - Cyclone Freddy that tore across Malawi, Mozambique, and Madagascar to flash floods in countries such as the Congo, Eastern Uganda, Rwanda, and Nigeria - have resulted in immense economic burdens, with recovery costs exceeding millions of dollars. Losses and damage from climate impacts, combined with debt burdens, undermine African countries and communities capacity to adapt and respond effectively to extreme weather events. 

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Where adaptation solutions do exist, a major stumbling block to scaling them up is the significant gap in adaptation finance. Although various multilateral regional and bilateral sources, such as the Green Climate Fund and the Adaptation Fund offer some adaptation funding, it falls short of the required levels. For instance, adaptation cost estimates for Africa increase from $25-50 billion per year under a 1.5℃ scenario to $16-60 billion per year under a 2℃ scenario. However, the amount of international finance mobilised for Africa’s adaptation is billions of dollars less than the adaptation cost estimates. The gap in adaptation financing, without even factoring in losses and damage, is even more concerning when compared to the fact that $2 trillion flows from the Global South to the Global North per annum.

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The summary notes of the fifth workshop under the Glasgow-Sharm el-Sheikh work programme on the Global Goal on Adaptation point out that incentives for adaptation investments could be created. Similar to those identified in point one of this letter, these could include tax waivers, grant and highly concessional loans, green credits, and even including externalities in project costs. Therefore, we call for the rapid and significant scaling up of debt-free, grant-based finance for African institutions, including the African Adaptation Initiative, and community-led efforts to effectively respond to the rising impacts of climate change in Africa. 

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3. Strengthen Adaptation Measures:

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As mentioned on several occasions in this letter, higher priority and finance support must be directed toward climate adaptation. Importantly, the majority of adaptation financing must be channelled to efforts that are locally-led, people centred, and sustain livelihoods. As noted in the IPBES-IPCC report, the benefits of many small, local biodiversity measures may only make a minimal contribution to global mitigation or biodiversity protection, but they have great benefits for local quality of life. Their benefits also accumulate at the global level, while fulfilling multiple biodiversity and climate objectives.

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Across Africa, community led adaptive solutions like agroecology, food sovereignty, forest restoration, the Zaï technique, and more already exist, particularly at the grassroots and community level. Often these locally led initiatives, with their roots in traditional knowledge systems and practices, are considered more successful than top-down government interventions. For instance, agroecology, with its link to Indigenous knowledge and food sovereignty movements, has numerous social, environmental, and economic co-benefits. These range from placing power and control back in the hands of small scale farmers to protecting biodiversity, boosting soil fertility, strengthening the resilience of farms to extreme weather events, and increasing local food sovereignty. 

 

It is crucial to support innovative and community-led adaptation projects that enhance Africa's resilience to climate change, protect vulnerable communities, and ensure sustainable livelihoods. Investing in transformative community-led measures is the first step to scaling up Africa’s climate adaptation and resilience. Rethinking and reconfiguring the global financial system and economics is vital to support a fundamental and widespread shift to agroecology and food sovereignty. 

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4. Finance climate education, capacity building, and skills transfer:

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Building Africa's resilience also depends on investments into climate education, capacity building, and skills transfer. By investing into climate education programs that integrate traditional knowledge systems and practices, we can build a more informed and engaged citizenry that understands the causes and impacts of climate change, and are better equipped to mitigate and adapt to its effects. Further benefits of investments into climate education and traditional knowledge include addressing disparities in climate literacy that exist between the Global North and South, preserving Indigenous knowledge systems across generations, and fostering innovation, new opportunities, and entrepreneurship in the climate sector, especially for the continent’s youthful population.

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By empowering local communities, governments, and organisations with knowledge and skills, we can enable them to effectively respond to climate challenges. Capacity building efforts should focus on agroecology (including organic farming), clean cooking, sustainable water management, renewable energy, a wide range of practical skills from Indigenous knowledge systems, and other climate-resilient practices. 

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Supporting climate education and capacity building programmes that integrate African Indigenous and traditional knowledge systems is equally crucial. Many of these knowledge systems are intrinsically connected to locally led and people-centred measures such as agroecology and the Zai technique. The roots of Africa’s resilience to climate impacts lies in its people’s innate wisdom, in traditional knowledge systems and practices and with communities that have lived on the land for centuries.

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In conclusion, we implore you to champion a climate-friendly policy agenda at the Summit for a new Global Finance Pact and advocate for stronger commitments to climate finance, especially for adaptation and loss and damage. By prioritising the concerns raised in this letter, we can create a resilient and sustainable future for Africa and the vulnerable communities it comprises. We trust that your leadership and dedication will drive transformative change for the betterment of our planet and its people.

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Thank you for your attention to this crucial matter. We look forward to seeing concrete actions and outcomes emerge from the Summit that reflect our collective commitment to a climate-friendly and resilient future.

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Yours sincerely,

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Organisations and Coalitions that endorse this statement

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350Africa.org

350 Ghana

Abibi Nsroma Foundation

Africa Coal Network

African Climate Reality Project

African Law Foundation (AFRILAW)

Alliance for Empowering Rural Communities

Appui aux Initiatives Communautaire de Conservation de l’Environnement et de Développement Durable (AICED)

Bank Information Center

Bougho Igzegh

Care For Environment

Centre for Citizens Conserving Environment & Management (CECIC) Uganda

CFE-CAMEROUN

Christian Aid

Climate Change African Opportunities

Climate Action Network Tanzania

Development Education and Leadership Teams in Action

Don't Gas Africa

EarthLore Foundation

Foundation for a Better World

GDMR Mozambique

GenderCC SA - Women for Climate Justice

Global Environmental Trust

Global Initiative for Food Security and Ecosystem Preservation

Greater Whange Residents Trust

Green Development Advocates

Green leaf Advocacy and Empowerment Center

Haki Nawiri Afrika

Hoedspruit Hub

IFI SYNERGY GROUP

Indigenous Women and Girls Initiative

JVE Côte d'Ivoire

Kallop Humanitarian and Environmental Center

Limpopo new venture creations

Lumière Synergie pour le Développement

Motsule projects

MWADO

Nareto Latia indigenous people's program

Natural Resource Women Platform

Noordhoek Environmental Action Group

Observatory of Sahara and Sahel (OSS)

OJEDD INTERNATIONAL

Plateforme des Acteurs pour une Justice Climatique

Power Shift Africa

Project Biome Africa

RAPEN

RESOURCE AFRICA

South African Organic Sector Organisation (SAOSO)

Sheba Organics (Pty) Ltd.

Southern Africa Food Lab

Strategic Youth Network for Development

Support Humanity Cameroon (SUHUCAM)

Surge Africa

Surplus People Project

Tane Ko Teemahane Women's Foundation

The Green Connection

The STEMinist Foundation

Voice of The Vulnerable

Vostile Creatives Trust

Women for Green Economy Movement Uganda

ZERO Zimbabwe Regional Environmental Organization

Zimbabwe Disaster Relief Agency

Zivai Community Empowerment Trust (ZICET)