Africa Needs $100bn Annually to bridge Climate Adaptation Financing Gap’

Arthur Eriye

The Director-General of Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Dr Emomotimi Agama has called for urgent mobilisation of capital markets to bridge Africa’s growing climate adaptation financing gap, which he says could reach $100 billion annually by 2030.

While speaking at the just concluded African Development Bank’s annual meeting, he stressed the need of mobilising both public and private investment through capital markets to confront the continent’s worsening climate challenges. Despite contributing less than 4 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, Africa suffers over 25 per cent of climate-related losses, according to Agama.

In his presentation titled, “The Role of Capital Markets in Closing Financing Gaps for Climate Adaptation,” he cited the 2022 African Economic Outlook report, which estimated Africa needs around $500 billion by 2030 for climate finance. Implementing Nationally Determined Contributions under the Paris Agreement would require over $3 trillion in investments across mitigation and adaptation.

Agama noted that the figures are not just statistics but indicators of deep vulnerability across the continent, “already evident in lost livelihoods in the Sahel, collapsing fish stocks in the Gulf of Guinea, and worsening floods in Lagos and Nairobi. He also referenced the 2023 UN Environment Programme Adaptation Gap Report, which estimated that developing countries will need between $212 billion and $387 billion annually for adaptation by 2030, with Africa’s shortfall up to 50 times greater than current funding levels.”

Agama urged African project developers and private sector actors to build strong, bankable, and environmentally sound projects ready for financing.