The African Development Bank (AfDB), United Nations agencies and the African Union have warned that climate change is accelerating insecurity and fragility across Africa.
The AfDB in a statement on its website, said the institutions called for urgent and coordinated global action to address the growing crisis.
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Speaking at a roundtable on the sidelines of COP30 in Belém, climate and security experts said Africa was now facing some of the world’s most severe climate-linked threats.
They said this included terrorism, inter-community clashes and forced displacement.
Dr Al Hamndou Dorsouma, Manager for Climate Change and Green Growth at the AfDB, said the continent was already overwhelmed by the combined burden of climate shocks and insecurity.
“Climate change is amplifying conflict and fragility on the continent.
“In 2024 alone, climate disasters caused 9.8 million new internal displacements in Africa, showing how deeply interconnected climate risks and forced mobility are,” he said.
He said that dwindling rainfall and water shortages had disrupted pastoral migration routes, worsening clashes across regions such as Ethiopia, Darfur, Kenya, Nigeria and the Sahel.
Dorsouma said the AfDB was scaling up support through its Strategy for Addressing Fragility and Building Resilience, Transition Support Facility, and the Climate Change and Green Growth Framework for 2030.
He added that the Bank’s Climate Action Window, launched in 2023 with about $450 million, had already backed 59 climate projects in fragile countries.
“Every dollar invested in climate adaptation and resilience generates a return of between $2 and $10.
“There is therefore the need for greater investment in early warning systems and adaptation measures,” he said.
Ms. Nazanine Moshiri, Senior Advisor on Climate, Peace and Strategic Partnerships at the Berghof Foundation, emphasised the importance of peace.
She said: “There can be no implementation of climate projects without peace; we cannot fight climate change without peace”.
Abdi Fidar, Director of the Climate Prediction and Applications Centre at IGAD, said many fragile areas do not benefit from climate finance, making it harder to separate the climate security nexus.
Charles Mwangi, Head of Programmes at the Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance, emphasised the role of civil society, saying communities closest to the crisis must shape national and continental policy.
The side event, themed “Adapting for Stability – Scaling Partnerships for Peace and Climate Resilience in Africa,” was convened by the UN Office to the African Union (UNOAU).
It was co-hosted by the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), and the African Union Commission (AUC).
Participants urged governments and development partners to scale up partnerships to build a more climate-resilient and peaceful Africa.
EnviroNews
