Africa Pushes for Climate Promises to Deliver Real Change

Opening the conference, ECA Executive Secretary Claver Gatete called for Africa to take a stronger role in shaping the decisions that determine how the world responds to climate change.

Africa's demand for climate action that reaches people's everyday lives took centre stage in Addis Ababa at the opening of the Fourteenth Conference on Climate Change and Development in Africa (CCDA-XIV), bringing together representatives from across the continent to address the gap between international commitments and delivery. Scheduled for September 7–9, 2026, the gathering brought policymakers, researchers, climate negotiators, financial institutions, development partners, civil society, young people and businesses into discussions about turning climate pledges into funded programmes that strengthen resilience and support development.

Convened under the ClimDev-Africa Programme, the conference is organised by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), the African Union Commission, the African Development Bank Group, the Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance and Afreximbank. Its theme, "From Pledges to Implementation: The Belem-Antalya-Addis Roadmap," places delivery at the heart of Africa's climate agenda, with discussions covering finance, adaptation, energy, science, carbon markets, critical minerals, food systems and peace.

Africa Wants a Greater Say in Climate Solutions

Opening the conference, ECA Executive Secretary Claver Gatete called for Africa to take a stronger role in shaping the decisions that determine how the world responds to climate change. His message went beyond securing recognition of the continent's vulnerability, pointing to the need for credible African proposals on finance, adaptation, energy, trade, technology and climate governance. "Africa must also help shape the solutions," said Gatete, who serves as a United Nations Under-Secretary-General.

Africa contributes less than four per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions but remains among the regions most vulnerable to climate change. Gatete highlighted the continent's renewable energy resources, critical minerals, growing market and young population as strengths that can support sustainable development and climate action. The challenge facing delegates is to connect those resources with financing and policies that respond to African development priorities.

Getting Climate Finance to Work for People

The question of how commitments become practical support ran through remarks by James Kinyangi, Coordinator of the ClimDev-Africa Special Fund at the African Development Bank. Speaking on behalf of Anthony Nyong, Director of the Climate Change and Green Growth Department, Kinyangi outlined the Fund's Phase II ambition to mobilise $100 million and leverage $300 million by 2030 to strengthen climate resilience across Africa. As the multi-donor financial investment arm of ClimDev-Africa, the Fund connects the programme's broader work on climate science and policy with investment.

Kinyangi placed the value of that financing in human terms, stressing that adaptation and resilience commitments must produce tangible benefits for people. "Africa is not merely a victim of climate change. We are a source of solutions, and those solutions must be financed and delivered at scale," he said. His remarks underscored the pressure to move beyond announcements towards financing that enables countries to put climate plans into practice.

Addis Ababa Sets Priorities for the Next Climate Talks

African Group of Negotiators Chair Nana Antwi-Boasiako identified predictable financing for adaptation and mitigation, faster implementation and protection of Africa's freedom to pursue sustainable development as measures of success. Those priorities give the conference a clear negotiating purpose, connecting discussions in Addis Ababa with the decisions African representatives will press for at COP31. The gathering follows the Seventh Africa Climate Talks and the UN climate convention's Subsidiary Bodies meetings.

The conference programme provides for the adoption of the Addis Ababa Climate Action Messages, setting out Africa's priorities for COP31 and a shared continental roadmap towards Ethiopia's stewardship of COP32 in 2027. For participants, the central test is whether that roadmap can help turn proposals on finance, resilience and development into commitments that countries have the resources to deliver.