The 17th African Economic Conference has ended with a call on the development community and governments to take decisive actions to address climate change.
The African Development Bank, United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, and United Nations Development Programme called on participants to walk the talk by producing innovative solutions for climate-smart development on the continent.
The conference, which was held in Balaclava, Mauritius, brought together policymakers, climate experts, representatives of the private sector, academics and youth to develop an action plan to guide Africa as it navigates the threat of climate change.
The conference which was jointly organized by the ADB, UNECF AND the UNDP, in collaboration with the government of Mauritius, had the theme Supporting Climate-smart Development in Africa.
During the conference, participants maintained that achieving net zero emissions—the crux of the three-day conference—can be accomplished if all stakeholders are robustly engaged, including providing the right environment for public-private partnerships.
“Africa is the region that is most vulnerable in the face of climate change,” said Mauritius’ Minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Development, Renganaden Padayachy. He added that the scourge of climate change poses a threat to lives.
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Speaking further, he said, “and if we limit climate change, we will change lives,” he said at the closing of the three-day conference, which had an in-person attendance of over 350 delegates, with thousands more participating online. AEC 2022 provided a timely forum to discuss innovative solutions to support climate-smart development in Africa”.
On his part, African Development Bank Acting Chief Economist and Vice President for Economic Governance and Knowledge Management, Prof. Kevin Urama, stressed that Africa’s future will come from the innovation of young Africans.
Speaking directly to Africa’s youth, Urama said: “Your innovation, your knowledge, your power, use that so that we can do climate-smart development on the continent.” He noted that the conference produced rich lessons, including challenges, solutions, and what the private sector and government can do to leverage available skills and technology.
In a speech on her behalf, UNDP Assistant Administrator and Director of the Regional Bureau for Africa, Ahunna Eziakonwa, called for accelerated action.
“We must be particularly mindful of the economic, societal, environmental, political, and security costs of green transitions. We must fully understand the trade-offs and opportunity costs on communities and families and avoid pathways that undermine development prospects and deepen inequalities,” Eziakonwa said.
She observed that climate finance is urgent and urged African governments to resolve the uncertainty around it. “Reaching net zero emissions must also mean reaching zero poverty,” Eziakonwa reiterated.
Story was adapted from AFDB.
