Climate investment must also support wider development priorities for Africa, including energy access, food security, resilient infrastructure, industrialization and jobs, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) has said.
The ECA said climate initiatives must be backed by sustained financing, clear institutional ownership and transparent reporting to deliver lasting results for African countries and communities.
The commission therefore urged governments and development partners to strengthen implementation and preserve the momentum of climate initiatives beyond the COP Presidencies that launch them.
“At each COP, new climate initiatives are announced. Some make considerable progress. Others struggle to maintain momentum once the Presidency that launched them has handed over,” the commission said.
Notably, African countries face mounting climate impacts alongside limited access to affordable finance and climate-related impacts are costing some countries between 2 and 5 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), while some are diverting as much as 9 per cent of their national budgets to respond to extreme weather events.
Meanwhile, Africa needs an estimated $277 billion annually to implement its nationally determined contributions through 2030, yet current climate finance flows meet only about 11 per cent of that requirement.
“High borrowing costs are already placing considerable pressure on our economies, consuming resources needed for essential services and development. Climate financing must ease these pressures rather than deepen them, while supporting investment in resilience, energy access and economic growth.” the commission further explained.
Speaking at the Africa Pavilion at COP31 in Antalya, Türkiye, the UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of ECA, Mr. Claver Gatete identified three priorities for making climate initiatives more effective.
These priorities, according to him, include; establishing institutional ownership that outlasts individual COP Presidencies, securing financing for implementation, and making results visible through clear targets, realistic timelines and transparent reporting.
“Political leadership can bring governments, institutions and investors together, but implementation often takes years. Without clear institutional ownership, even promising initiatives can lose momentum when leadership changes,” he stressed.
He made the observation while delivering opening remarks at a discussion entitled, “From Pledges to Implementation: Delivering on Presidential Initiatives – Lessons for Africa on the Road to COP32.
He also harped on the gap between launching initiatives and resourcing them and he cited a 2025 assessment by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water which examined 203 cooperative climate initiatives and found that only 28 per cent had dedicated budgets.
Mr. Gatete called for lessons to be drawn from initiatives that have mobilized investment, worked with development finance institutions and helped countries prepare investment-ready projects.
He equally noted hat monitoring and reporting arrangements should remain practical, particularly for countries with limited institutional capacity, while supporting stronger coordination, less duplication and better use of available resources.
Looking ahead to COP32 in Ethiopia, the ECA boss highlighted the COP31 Presidency’s Climate Implementation Bridge, which seeks to help countries translate climate and development commitments into projects capable of attracting financing.
“Ethiopia is among the initiative’s first five pilot countries, offering an opportunity to strengthen project preparation and access to finance while generating practical experience ahead of COP32 in Addis Ababa.” he added.
He reaffirmed ECA’s commitment to working with the African Union, member States and development partners to advance these priorities.
“As Ethiopia prepares to host COP32, we must put these lessons to work, strengthening the institutions, financing and partnerships needed to sustain climate initiatives and deliver results for African countries and communities,” he concluded.
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