Addis Ababa — Africa plans to lay out a strong case for increased investments in the water, food and energy sectors at the UN Climate Summit in New York to be held on 23 September, according to the Secretariat of the ClimDev-Africa Programme in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
In a joint statement, the African Union Commission (AUC), the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and the African Development Bank (AfDB) have convened a major pre-event in New York on 22 September at the Conference Room 7, in the General Assembly building, under the theme, 'Moving against the tide: Africa rising to seize climate change opportunities" Water, Food and Energy Security'. The event aims to bring to the fore Africa's particular climate challenges and opportunities and its efforts to turn these challenges into development opportunities.
ClimDev-Africa partners (AUC, ECA and AfDB) organize regular international encounters to elicit new knowledge and innovative ideas on how best Africa could rise to the challenges posed by the impacts of climate change
During the Third International Conference on Small Island Developing States (SIDS) in Apia, Samoa, at the beginning of this month, they convened a high-level panel discussion on the theme The Paradox of the 'small' securing development opportunities in the face of climate change in Africa Small Island Developing States (SIDS), chaired by Mr. Carlos Lopes, the Executive Secretary of the ECA.
During the New York Climate Summit, African leaders hope to catalyze international actions and support to Africa's climate mitigation and adaptation efforts, especially in tackling the nexus between food, energy and water.
The side event aims to showcase how the ClimDev-Africa programmes has strengthened Africa's capacity to 'move against the tide' to ensure water, food, energy security in changing climate, according to Ms Fatima Denton, Director of Special Initiatives Division at the ECA, and one of the key organizers of the side event.
Climate change poses a unique set of challenges to Africa, threatening to destabilize its key sectors - agriculture, water and energy. Africa is rising to the challenge of transforming its agriculture, while addressing the continent's food, water and energy security in a bid to sustain its current and future growth.
The side event will bring together policy makers, researchers, climate change negotiators, partners and other stakeholders to deliberate on how opportunities in climate change could be harnessed to transform agriculture, taking into account its linkages to other key economic sectors such as energy and water resources.
The Climate for Development in Africa (ClimDev-Africa) Programme is a joint initiative of the African Union Commission (AUC), the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and the African Development Bank (AfDB). It is mandated at the highest level of African political leadership (AU Summit of Heads of State and Government) to create a solid foundation for an appropriate response to climate change. African Ministers of Finance, of Planning and of Environment have also emphasized the potential role of the ClimDev-Africa in building resilience to the impacts of climate change in the region.
Ms. Denton added that the event will provide an opportunity to further consolidate the place of ClimDev-Africa as an institution of choice for climate change issues in Africa.
"ClimDev-Africa hopes to underscore the urgency of making needed investments and interventions to address challenges facing vulnerable groups as well as to focus on opportunities in climate change in order to bring about long term resilience to impacts of climate change and development" she explains.
For more information on the participation of ClimDev-Africa partners at next week's summit in New York, go to http://www.climdev-africa.org/unsummit2014
