African Development Bank Group President Dr. Akinwumi A. Adesina has described climate change as the most significant challenge to achieving the SDGs.
Detailing the devastation it brings to economies through droughts, floods, and cyclones, he said that Africa is the worst affected region in the world, yet it receives the least in terms of climate financing.
“Africa will need $277 billion per year to address climate change, yet it receives only $30 billion annually.” The African Development Bank, Adesina said, “has set a target to raise $25 billion for climate adaptation by 2025.”
He was speaking at the Islamic Development Bank’s 50th anniversary celebrations in Riyadh.
He highlighted a growing annual financial shortfall of $4 trillion, a gap that threatens to derail efforts to achieve the SDGs by 2030.
He also addressed the issue of volatile food prices exacerbated by geopolitical conflicts, supply disruptions and trade restrictive practices of some major food exporters.
Adesina reiterated the African Development Bank’s commitment of $25 billion to support Africa become self-sufficient in food by 2030. He shared with the audience key successes in transforming agricultural productivity and food security across Africa.
He mentioned the Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation (TAAT) program, which has already delivered climate-resilient crop varieties of wheat, maize, and rice to 13 million farmers. Ethiopia, through the introduction of heat-tolerant wheat varieties provided by the TAAT program, has achieved self-sufficiency in wheat production within four years and has become a net exporter of wheat.
He thanked the Islamic Development Bank for committing $7 billion during the Feed Africa summit held early last year by the African Development Bank, the African Union and the government of Senegal. The summit brought together 34 heads of state and government who developed country-led food and agricultural delivery compacts to achieve food security by 2030.
Energy Access
Highlighting the disparity in electricity access, where over 675 million people worldwide lack electricity with 80% of them in sub-Saharan Africa, he underscored the Bank’s efforts through the Desert-to-Power initiative. This project is developing 10,000 megawatts of solar power across the Sahel and will provide electricity access for 250 million people.