Mahmoud Mohieldin, UN Climate Change High-Level Champion for Egypt, said that the first major regional roundtable for financing climate action held in Africa removed barriers successfully between all climate actors, and produced great outcomes to finance projects that help achieve all climate goals.
His remarks came during the closing session of the Africa Roundtable entitled “Towards COP27: Africa Regional Forum on Climate Initiatives to Finance Climate Action”, which took place in Addis Ababa in August 2-4.
Mohieldin clarified that the Africa Roundtable succeeded in bringing climate projects and different financing entities under one roof, adding that the forum addressed investment in different climate action axis, stressing the importance of balancing investments in mitigation and adaptation measures.
“We will build on the success of the Africa Roundtable in the next four regional forums that will take place in August and September.”, He said.
He added that the African forum outcomes are promising to get distinct projects from the next regional roundtables that deserve to be showcased as models for climate action during COP27 which will be held in Sharm El Sheikh next November.
Mohieldin said that the African forum outcomes added more clarity on climate action financing plans, helped in getting solutions and new mechanisms to scale up investments and finance of climate projects and reducing the cost of the economic and environmental transition to achieve a green and stable global economy, adding that the forum sessions positively addressed the ways of achieving NDCs, beside the innovative finance instruments.
Mohieldin pointed out that the forum discussed minimizing the gap between the available funds and the targeted funds to finance climate projects, it also discussed fulfilling previous COPs commitments to finance climate projects such as $100 billion pledged by the Copenhagen conference, and $130 trillion pledged by GFANZ coalition, besides addressing the ways of helping emerging economies and developing countries to make benefits.
“The forum stressed the importance of scaling up climate projects financing in obvious and transparent frameworks, this requires increased governance and oversight by states and governments of climate financing channels and the optimal management of this financing in a way that helps to implement climate projects, achieving SDGs as a whole, and help states to achieve its goals.”, Mohieldin added.
The climate champion said that the forum participants confirmed the importance of the participation of all actors to achieve food and water security, smart climate agriculture, land restoration, benefiting from new and renewable energy sources and investing in the blue economy in a way that helps to save Africans livelihoods and increasing the resilience.
He said also that the forum showed that every climate actor -including governments, the private sector, development banks, the insurance sector and different financing entities- has a role in creating an enabling and supportive environment under which implementation actors can do their own part. The forum showed also that PPPs are essential in financing and implementing climate projects in a holistic approach that includes achieving all SDGs.
“Projects and plans presented during the forum showed that Africa has its climate solutions that will be showcased to the world in COP27, it also showed Africa’s readiness to participate effectively in curbing climate change.”, Mohieldin concluded.
