The President of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina has stated that Africa loses around $7 to $15 billion annually due to climate change.
The AfDB boss stated this during a presentation at the Adaptation Finance Summit for Africa, an event on the sideline of the COP28 summit held in Dubai.
Dr. Adesina lamented the low contribution of African countries to global emissions but the huge impact the continent faces as a result.
In his words,
- “Africa which accounts for only 3% of global emissions suffers disproportionately from its devastating effects. The latest climate vulnerability index shows nine out of 10 most vulnerable countries in the world to climate change are in Sub-Saharan Africa.”
- “It loses $7 to $15 billion annually due to climate change and that is projected to rise to $50 billion by 2050.”
He further noted that the continent only receives a meagre 4.5% of global climate finance and its climate adaption fund of $10 billion is just a drop in the ocean as it needs over ten times more.
Speaking further, Dr. Adesina enumerated the efforts of the bank towards combating climate change explaining that the AfDB now devotes 63% of its total climate finance to climate adaptation.
He also stated the launch of the African Adaptation Acceleration Program to mobilise $25 billion in climate adaptation for the least developed countries.
What you should know
According to a report from the World Meteorological Organization, climate change in Africa is responsible for food insecurity across the continent, conflicts, displacement and migration, and dwindling economies and ecosystems.
The report states that, in 2022, over 110 million people in the continent were directly impacted by weather, climate, and water-related hazards, resulting in economic damages exceeding US$ 8.5 billion. The Emergency Event Database reported 5,000 fatalities, with 48% linked to drought and 43% to flooding.
One area where climate change deals a fatal blow to the continent is agriculture. The continent’s food import bill is expected to rise by $110 billion by 2025.
In Nigeria, climate change is fuelling banditry and insecurity across the northwest as cattle herders and farmers struggle over land and water.
