Africa Climate Week formally closed last Friday, concluding a
five-day programme of events
in Accra at the city’s International Conference Center.
The event took place in the shadows of Cyclone Idai, which hit Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and Malawi, affecting more than 2 million people – a stark reminder of the moral imperative to act on climate change, which experts say is exacerbating such storms.
Distinguished speakers at the High-Level Segment, including the President of the Republic of Ghana, COP 24 President and IPCC Vice-Chair, underlined the need to foster cooperation from all countries and non-Party stakeholders globally and regionally to meet the 1.5C temperature goal inked in the Paris Agreement. In addition, they stressed the critical interlinkage between the climate and development agendas.
Throughout the whole week, emphasis was given to the current focus on Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and, in particular, how cooperation on transformative climate action can achieve higher ambition and implementation. In this context, the thematic discussions on Thursday revolved around Cities & Local Action, Energy Transition, and Nature-Based Solutions, which directly correspond to three of the ‘Transformative Areas’ that the United Nations Secretary-General has selected to guide the Climate Action Summit in New York City in September this year.
At the Summary Event on the last day, speakers presented key takeaways to Ambassador Luis Alfonso de Alba, UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for the Summit, who will carry them as input into the September gathering.
