* Report highlights catalysing private sector and natural capital finance to support climate action and green growth
Ahead of the 28th United Nations Conference on Climate Change (COP28), the African Development Bank Group has launched country-by-country economic reports to guide African policymakers' discussions at the global event.
The new Country Focus Reports (CFRs) provide analysis and policy recommendations to strengthen countries' active participation at COP28, which takes place in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, from 30 November to 12 December. The theme of the reports is "Mobilising private sector finance for climate and green growth in Africa".
The 2023 editions of the CFRs are expected to foster policy dialogue on macroeconomic performance and outlook and provide insights on mobilising private sector and natural capital finance to drive the continent's climate resilience and green growth policies.
African Development Bank Group Chief Economist and Vice President Prof. Kevin Chika Urama said the reports will help evoke "sound, practical and implementable policies to enhance private sector financing for climate change and green growth".
"As countries prepare for COP28, the reports provide each African country with independent, verified analysis and recommendations for evidence-based negotiations during the global conversation on climate finance and green transitions," Urama said.
The reports provide short-, medium-, and long-term strategies to accelerate African countries' economic growth and build resilience to shocks. They provide governments and potential investors with up-to-date, accurate data to inform policy and investment decisions.
With climate change identified as one of the most pressing existential threats to Africa's inclusive growth and sustainable development, the country reports will explore opportunities to leverage private sector resources and natural capital to close the climate finance gap. This, in turn, will support the transition to inclusive, strong, and sustainable green growth.
The African Development Bank's Acting Director of Country Economics, Ferdinand Bakoup, said the Country Focus Reports build on the 2023 African Economic Outlook report, launched in May, and the subsequent Regional Economic Outlooks.
He said: "The CFRs' detailed country-level analysis and policy recommendations will impact policy design and future projects and programmes in African countries."
Through these continental, regional, and country-specific reports, the African Development Bank Group seeks to reduce the information imbalances that result from generalising about countries across a very diverse continent.
The reports highlight how governments can strengthen macroeconomic performance and outlook and catalyse private sector and natural capital finance to support climate action and green growth initiatives in the country. These include green bonds, debt for climate swaps, green banks, blended finance, carbon markets, and other innovative financing instruments.
The African Economic Outlook (AEO) 2023 report shows that several African economies have shown remarkable resilience despite a series of compounding shocks in recent years: the Covid-19 pandemic, the persistent impacts of climate change, global conflicts, financial market volatility, rising debt vulnerabilities, and more.
The AEO estimates that five of the six best-performing African economies before the pandemic will be back in the league of the world's 10 fastest-growing economies in 2023 and 2024. It indicated how external financial inflows to Africa, including foreign direct and portfolio investment, official development assistance, and remittances, have rebounded by about 20%, reaching $216.5 billion or 7.5% of Africa's GDP in 2021.
Urama explained: "Expanding private sector participation in green growth markets requires several policy interventions, including strengthening the capacity to develop long-term green growth strategies."
He added that this includes the development of appropriate regulations and incentives, supporting project preparation and development, and developing more robust capital markets that can support easy entry and exit for domestic and global investors.
"It will require greater use of blended finance, the use of de-risking facilities at scale, and the development of platforms that allow the private sector to invest in a portfolio of green projects, rather than individual projects, to diversify and manage risk," Urama said.
Click here for more information and to download the individual country reports.
