Accelerating adaptation finance – Africa and global perspectives

This policy brief highlights the need to dramatically increase the amount and efficacy of adaptation financing to Africa. This brief also spotlights the persistent challenges related to adaptation finance flows in Africa, and highlights priority actions for the global finance community to undertake to address them. As climate change impacts accelerate globally, adaptation efforts have become an urgent imperative. This is especially true in the most vulnerable regions, including Africa.

Key messages from the report include: 

• Adaptation finance flows to Africa must grow 5–10-fold
• The foregone economic benefits of missing adaptation investments in Africa could reach as much as USD 6 trillion by 2035.
• The majority of adaptation finance to Africa is channeled through loans, making the debt situation of countries more onerous
• Everybody must increase adaptation finance
• Adaptation finance is highly concentrated in Africa; countries must strengthen their strategic planning, adaptation priority programs, and institutions