ADF’s Climate Action Window ‘ll Empower 20 Million Farmers In Africa – Adesina

(AFRICAN EXAMINER) – President of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Dr. Akinwumi Adesina has reassured that the African Development Fund’s Climate Action Window will provide 20 million farmers with access to climate-smart agricultural technologies.

The African Development Fund (ADF) is the concessional window of the AfDB group. It contributes to the promotion of economic and social development in 38 least developed African countries by providing concessional funding for projects and programmes, as well as technical assistance for studies and capacity building activities.

Dr. Adesina gave the assurance while speaking at the opening ceremony of this year’s Civil Society Forum in Abidjan. The meeting was held from the 6th to 7th of October, a month before the global climate summit, COP27, scheduled to take place from the 6th to 18th of November in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt.

The forum is an open dialogue with civil society actors, allowing their voices and proposals to be heard. The theme for 2022 edition of event was: “Engaging civil society for climate resilience and just energy transition”.

Notably, this year’s forum enabled grassroots organizations to elevate the voice of African farmers to the highest level of decision-making.

He said the 20 million farmers and pastoralists will also be equipped with weather-indexed insurance, adding that “it will rehabilitate one million hectares of degraded land”.

He also reaffirmed the importance of the work of African civil society in advocacy and its role in monitoring the achievement of the continent’s climate objectives.

The bank chief therefore urged civil society organizations to “strongly defend and support the ADF16 replenishment, as it holds the promise of supporting the most vulnerable against the ravages of climate change”.

In a similar vein, the AfDB’s Vice President for Power, Energy, Climate and Green Growth, Kevin Kariuki noted that 600 million people did not have access to electricity and about 1 billion lacked access to clean cooking.

Karuike said to meet its needs, Africa must double its energy consumption by 2040, adding that compliance with the objectives of the Paris Agreement was important, including more use of renewable energy, to decarbonize some sectors, especially maritime and aviation, and to strengthen regional interconnection to move towards an African electricity market.

He further stated that COP27 must help refocus attention on Africa’s needs and priorities.

In his remarks, the President of the African Farmers’ Organization, Kolyang Palebele observed that as far as climate change is concerned it has become increasingly imperative to take action.

“The time is critical. We must react quickly to the shocks of climate change affecting the African people”, he stressed.

He called for the integration of resilience into national development plans and challenged African heads of state to operationalize the Malabo Declaration on Accelerated Growth and Transformation of Agriculture in Africa for Shared Prosperity.

Members of the diplomatic corps gave strong support to the continent’s climate change objectives. Ambassador Wael Badawi, the Egyptian Ambassador to Côte d’Ivoire, commended the forum “for protecting our future and that of future generations” before inviting participants to rendezvous in Sharm-El-Sheikh for the next meeting in November.

The Ambassador of Korea to Côte d’Ivoire, Mr. Lee Sang Ryul commended the AfDB’s efforts to ensure accountability and for the involvement of civil society organizations. He reiterated his country’s commitment to supporting energy projects, institutional capacity building and growth on the continent.

Similarly, the representative of the Ivorian Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development, Mr. Sidi Braïma Dagnogo, praised the support and efforts of the Bank towards Côte d’Ivoire.

He said his country had committed – during the revision of its nationally determined contribution, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 30.4 percent.

While recalling AfDB’s work with African civil society, its Vice President for Agriculture, Human and Social Development, Beth Dunford underscored civil society’s crucial role as an essential link between the bank and African communities.

“It is in this sense that this forum has particular significance in consolidating African voices for COP27,” she added.
COP27 is expected to be Africa’s COP, where Africa’s concerns must be raised to advance the global agenda on climate change.