Africa loses between seven and fifteen billion dollars a year as a result of climate change, according to Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, head of the African Development Bank (AfDB).
In an interview with the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), which the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) was watching, the bank’s president, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, stated as much.
He claims that this is the case despite only making about 3% of world emissions.
According to Adesina, Africa was hardest hit by the effects of climate change, which had disastrous repercussions for economies and agriculture.
The AfDBank has launched significant programmes to increase resilience and adjust to a changing climate in response.
“By 2030, the African Development Bank (AfDB) aims to double its climate finance to $25 billion, with a particular emphasis on the African Adaptation Acceleration Programme.”
With a target of 25 billion dollars, this plan will be the greatest in the world when it comes to climate adaptation.
“In addition, the African Development Bank (AfDB) has established a climate action window with an initial investment of 429 million dollars, projected to increase to 13 billion dollars,” the speaker added.
According to Adesina, this window provides crop insurance, land restoration, and climate information services to vulnerable countries.
He claimed that creative financing strategies were essential to the success of these climate adaptation programmes.
According to Adesina, the bank has started employing partial credit guarantees, which allowed nations like Senegal, Cote d’Ivoire, and Benin to obtain substantial amounts of money at cheaper interest rates.
For instance, Benin used a partial credit guarantee of 195 million dollars to raise 400 million dollars from Chinese investors.
Egypt received 500 million dollars from Chinese markets thanks to the AfDB’s assistance with the Panda Bond issuance.
“These financial innovations promote long-term investments in climate resilience and lower borrowing costs for African nations.”
“Africa is leading the charge in innovative solutions and sustainable development, despite the challenges posed by climate change,” he declared.
As a result, the head of the AfDB stated that changes were necessary since the current global financial architecture was not effectively serving Africa’s interests.
He stated that the bank was leading the way in advocating for Africa to utilise Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) more effectively.