The 13th Conference on Climate Change and Development in Africa (CCDA-XIII), held from 5 to 7 September, concluded with a strong call for a coherent, evidence-based, and investment-ready African climate agenda. Bringing together more than 250 policymakers, negotiators, scientists, civil society representatives, and youth leaders, the event reaffirmed CCDA’s role as Africa’s premier platform linking climate science, policy, and action. The outcomes of the conference will inform the Second Africa Climate Summit (ACS2) and shape Africa’s common position at COP30 in Belém, Brazil.
During the opening session, Mithika Mwenda, Executive Director of the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance, stressed the urgency of moving beyond pledges to concrete action. He emphasized that Africa’s climate justice requires financing African-led solutions rather than dependency on charity. Anthony Nyong, Director of Climate Change and Green Growth at the African Development Bank, highlighted the disparity between Africa’s minimal emissions and the disproportionate climate impacts it faces. Despite contributing less than 4% of global emissions, the continent receives only 3% of international climate finance, while housing nine of the ten most climate-vulnerable countries.
Nyong outlined the Bank’s proactive measures, including scaling climate-smart investments, institutional reforms, and mobilizing $4 billion through the Climate Action Window by 2025 to support fragile and vulnerable states. He emphasized that resilience must be built at the frontlines of vulnerability, linking adaptation to peace, empowering African nations to lead their own climate transitions, and strengthening their capacity for decisive action. James Kinyangi, Coordinator of the ClimDev-Africa Special Fund, reinforced the role of science as Africa’s first line of defense, stressing the urgent need to close knowledge gaps by investing in climate data and early warning systems to save lives and build resilience.
The conference outcomes include a series of technical recommendations that will guide the Addis Ababa Declaration and Africa’s unified voice at COP30. These highlight the importance of strengthening climate intelligence, scaling adaptation and resilience measures, transforming climate finance from aid-based to investment-driven models, ensuring a just transition with universal energy access, expanding ecosystems and nature-based solutions, improving governance and institutional coherence, and pressing the global community to fulfill finance and adaptation commitments.
In closing, Claver Gatete, United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa, underscored Africa’s proactive stance. He described the conference as a bridge linking evidence with ambition and technical expertise with political momentum. He affirmed that Africa is not waiting to be acted upon but is actively shaping its future, leveraging its resources, and offering climate solutions to the world.
