UNITED NATIONS, December 24 (IPS) – Finding new financing for the benefit of the world has become more challenging than ever. Negotiations at the recently concluded COP16 on Environment and Biodiversity failed to reach an agreement to establish a fund to support the implementation of the Environmental Framework agreed to by 2022 under the Montreal-Kunming agreement.
As part of the Great Blue Wall initiative, the goal is to protect 30% of the country’s Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ) by 2030, with a focus on exploiting the surplus in critical ecosystems such as mangroves, corals, and seagrasses.
As with all international actions, commitments without resources lead to questions about the effectiveness of these international processes. The gap between global commitments and actual resource allocation hits African countries particularly hard, as these countries often have limited capacity to produce those resources in the first place.
African negotiators emphasized the need for accountability in honoring international commitments and will continue to maintain this position in future climate negotiations.
At the same time, many African countries are actively seeking to open new sources of financing for climate and environmental sustainability through new financing methods such as debt swaps, green bonds, and green bonds.
The Blue Economy has emerged as a key area of focus in Africa, and one of the priorities outlined in the AU’s Agenda 2063. However, African countries have continued to struggle in managing and benefiting from their resources.
A good example is the continued distribution of subsidies for dangerous fisheries. The number of subsidies from remote fishing nations for their vessels operating in African waters represents twice the amount of support that African countries can provide for their fishing vessels.
This disparity undermines the local economy and destroys the resources of the African Ocean, furthering the difficult efforts to build a sustainable and resilient economy.
The Great Blue Wall
African countries have sought to redefine the way they use marine areas to develop a ‘renewable green economy’. This means reinvesting in the ocean to create jobs that involve the community that manages oceans and coastal ecosystems.
This is reflected in the Great Blue Wall initiative, an ambitious project that seeks to create a network of protected and restored marine areas that benefit biodiversity and the health of local communities.
The plan aims to protect 30% of the country’s Special Economic Zones by 2030 and generate significant profits from critical ecosystems such as mangroves, corals and seagrasses. It is hoped that this initiative could contribute to up to 70 million lives in the region and up to 10 million green jobs by 2030.
The Great Blue Wall system includes 10 countries: Comoros, Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, Seychelles, Somalia, South Africa, Tanzania, and France (through its overseas port La Réunion). These countries work together to promote social and environmental sustainability, improve lives, and strengthen efforts to address climate change.
Financing
Most importantly, the program aims to raise funds to achieve a common goal, while building on the efforts of individual countries. This brings some benefits, especially in creating economies of scale.
This common approach could also provide valuable assistance in addressing issues such as fisheries management and moving away from the current state of fisheries subsidies to a community-led approach to resource management.
Additionally, many other African countries are looking to take advantage of new climate finance opportunities to generate resources to invest in their green economies.
For example, Cabo Verde and São Tomé and Príncipe have made agreements with Portugal to convert parts of their national debt into climate investments. For Cabo Verde, the agreement includes a debt swap of $12.9 million (€12 million), while the agreement for São Tomé and Príncipe includes $3.7 million (€3.5 million). These funds are redirected to climate investment projects rather than paid directly to Portugal.
In Cabo Verde, the focus is on water, sanitation, and energy projects, including the expansion of the photovoltaic industry and the development of desalination and water treatment facilities. The project aims to use solar energy to produce desalinated water, to address energy and water needs.
São Tomé and Príncipe alike will contribute their debt payments to the national climate fund, which supports various green investments and projects to tackle climate change.
This innovative approach ensures that debt repayment contributes to sustainable development and environmental protection in these countries. Although the amounts are relatively small, they can be catalysts for large sums of money.
It is because of this that Sao Tome and Principe also announced the establishment of a Conservation Trust Fund aimed at channeling resources to the conservation of their unique natural heritage and using new economic opportunities related to eco-tourism.
All of these efforts to mobilize climate finance are based on the needs of people at the forefront of climate change. This is perhaps the most important part of these efforts, because it underlines the biggest challenge of international cooperation: ensuring that support is delivered to the most vulnerable in society.
Investing in the connection between climate, nature, and resilience is one of the most urgent and effective steps we can take. The right investment can help unlock the true value of Africa’s natural resources, estimated by the African Development Bank (AfDB) to be worth up to $6.2 trillion.
We need global processes to deliver the promise of predictable financial flows at scale. However, what is equally important is the need to open African-led community-based programs. These innovations help start that journey, paving the way for meaningful change, empowering communities while addressing the challenges of climate change.
Jean-Paul Adam he is the Director, Policy, Monitoring and Advocacy at the UN Office of the Special Adviser on Africa.
The source: Africa Renewal, United Nations
IPS UN Bureau
© Inter Press Service (2024) — All Rights ReservedOriginal source: Inter Press Service
Source link
