Africa Climate Resilient Infrastructure Summit 2016
Addressing climate resilient infrastructure in Africa
The Africa Climate Resilient Infrastructure Summit (ACRIS II) took place in Addis Ababa on 20-21 April and was organised by the African Union Commission (AUC), the UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) and the World Bank. The ACRIS II saw more than 150 representatives of regional African economic and political organisations, river basin authorities, national authorities, financing institutions and the private sector.
Close to $100 billion will be required to meet Africa’s infrastructure needs over the next decade. Much of the needed investment is in long-lived infrastructure, such as power stations, roads, reservoirs and irrigation canals, which are vulnerable to changes in climate patterns. Failure to integrate climate change into the planning and design of this infrastructure could lead to major negative development impacts, such as crop losses, traffic disruptions, reduced power production and higher energy costs.
To assist African countries to increase their institutional and human capacity for systematic integration of climate change considerations into the planning and design of long-lived investments, the World Bank, AUC and UNECA teamed up to develop the Africa Climate Resilient Infrastructure Facility (ACRIF), which was presented at the Africa Pavilion during the COP21 in Paris.
NDF’s Country Program Manager Aage Jørgensen joined a high-level panel to discuss the ACRIF. The discussion was framed by Raffaello Cervigni from the World Bank and the panel was led by Dr. Fatima Denton, from UNECA and included the Ministers for water and energy resources from Egypt and Ethiopia, the AUC and the African Risk Capacity Insurance Company Limited. Mr. Jørgensen stressed the innovative elements of the ACRIF, which will build on existing initiatives, promote novel approaches and develop new resources.
The ACRIF will assist governments, planners and developers in Africa to integrate climate change in project planning and design, thereby attracting climate finance from the Green Climate Funds and other sources. The Facility will be anchored with the Africa Climate Policy Center, and implemented in collaboration between the AUC, UNECA and the World Bank. The Facility will develop guidelines, provide training, deliver on-demand advisory services, make data and knowledge tools more easily accessible, and ultimately help attract funding from various sources of development and climate finance to meet the incremental cost of climate-proofing Africa’s infrastructure.
The ACRIF is an outcome of the project Addressing the Vulnerability of Africa’s Infrastructure, co-financed by NDF together with the World Bank, UK Department for International Development, Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau, Agence Française de Développement and the Government of the Netherlands.
More information:
Programme for Africa Climate Resilient Infrastructure Summit 2016
