Climate development in Africa

Ramesh Jaura in InDepth News: Amidst persistent warnings that climate change will destroy Africa, the leaders of the world's second largest and second most populous continent have launched the 'Climate for Development in Africa Programme' and decided to set up an 'Africa Green Fund'.

The two significant steps to defend the continent come in run-up to the landmark UN climate change conference from November 29 to December 10 in Cancun, Mexico, where the African Green Fund is expected to get underway.

The Climate for Development in Africa (ClimDev-Africa) Programme has been launched by the African Development Bank (AfDB), the African Union Commission (AUC) and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) at a ceremony on the sidelines of the Seventh African Development Forum (ADF VII) on October 13 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

…Of 22 climate funds available worldwide, Africa has access only to a few. The carbon market has not brought much money to Africa so far. Several hundred projects in Mexico, Brazil, India and China are funded under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). There are only a handful of CDM projects in South Africa and very few others on the rest of the continent.

… Africa is not well served by existing financing mechanisms since the continent's unique problems such as high vulnerability to climate change and unique emission patterns related to agriculture and land use are never factored into the design of global funds. He called for a more appropriate financing mechanism such as the Africa Green Fund…..

A giant anthill in Zambia, shot by J nestor, Wikimedia Commons, under the Creative Commons CC0 waiver