According to authorities at a summit in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, on Monday, wealthy nations pledged to spend roughly $25 billion by 2025 to support Africa’s attempts to adapt to climate change as the region continues to struggle with drought, cyclones, and high heat.
The Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program, a joint project between several countries and organisations, is hailed as the largest worldwide adaptation effort ever given the sum offered.
The African Development Bank has agreed to contribute half of the total, while representatives from Denmark, the United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands, the International Monetary Fund, and other organisations have also expressed support for the project.
Although the continent is home to close to 17% of the world’s population and only produces 3% to 4% of emissions, experts say it is particularly vulnerable to climate change because it is less able to adapt.
The money will be used by African countries to strengthen their capacity for renewable energy sources, safeguard biodiversity, and increase their resilience to catastrophic weather events like droughts and floods.
Just a few weeks prior to the meeting, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development revealed that wealthy nations had fallen short of their 2009 commitment to invest $100 billion annually to help developing nations adapt to a changing environment.
The organization said $83.3 billion was given to poorer nations in 2020, the highest ever sum, but still short of the original amount.
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