African Development Bank puts nature at centre of finance plans across 13 countries

Natural Capital Accounting, or NCA, helps countries build a clearer picture of their natural assets and their contribution to the economy.

The African Development Bank Group has launched a new phase of a project to help 13 African countries bring the value of their natural resources into decisions about public spending and development finance. The work will support governments in using natural capital accounts to inform national plans, shape budgets and attract investment that benefits nature.

The second phase of the Mainstreaming Natural Capital in Africa's Development Finance project, known as NC4-ADF II, was launched on 8 October in Addis Ababa, alongside the Forum of the Africa Natural Capital Accounting Community of Practice. It builds on an initial phase that demonstrated how natural capital accounting can contribute to development finance decisions.

Turning natural resource data into spending decisions

Natural Capital Accounting, or NCA, helps countries build a clearer picture of their natural assets and their contribution to the economy. The new phase will support governments in producing these accounts and using the findings in planning and budgeting, giving that evidence a practical role in development decisions. The project will help countries mobilise finance for investments that benefit nature and expand opportunities to exchange knowledge and learn from one another's experience.

"The NC4-ADF II Project represents a step change in how Africa approaches natural capital," said Innocent Onah, Chief Natural Resources Officer at the African Development Bank Group and the project's task manager. "It is about turning evidence into action and about building a community of practice that will generate lessons that benefit the entire continent." The Africa Natural Capital Accounting Community of Practice and the Bank Group's African Natural Resources Management and Investment Centre will implement the project.

Thirteen countries set priorities for the next phase

The participating countries are Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Côte d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, Rwanda, Tanzania, Togo, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Representatives used the launch to explain what they need from the project, identifying capacity building, stronger data systems and effective institutional arrangements as priorities. These needs will inform work tailored to each country's circumstances.

The project's Joint Steering Committee met during the event, bringing together national focal points from all 13 countries and technical partners. Participants included the African Union Development Agency, known as AUDA-NEPAD, GIZ, the UN Economic Commission for Africa, the United Nations Environment Programme and the World Wildlife Fund.

The meeting produced draft terms of reference for the committee and agreement on steps to strengthen country ownership, giving participating governments a central role in directing the work.

Building on experience from Uganda and Kenya

Onah described the project as "the next chapter in Africa's NCA journey," pointing to the momentum generated by the first two Africa NCA Policy Forums, held in Uganda in 2019 and Kenya in 2023.

Those forums highlighted progress in developing natural capital accounts, sharing experience between countries and building communities of technical specialists. The second project phase will draw on that experience to help governments make greater use of the information they produce.

The Bank Group and its partners will now work with participating countries to develop country-specific work plans, strengthen institutional arrangements and mobilise resources. These steps will support the move from compiling accounts to applying their findings in the financing and policy decisions that shape development.