ECA vows to further partnership in Africa’s fight against climate change

Reiterating its tangible contribution to Africa’s efforts of adaptation, preparedness and response to climate change, the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) has vowed to continue working with sister UN agencies and other partners on the issue.

The ECA Executive Secretary Vera Songwe made the remarks recently  during the joint launch of “State of the Global Climate Report” by the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) Secretary-General Petteri Taalas, according to a statement from the Commission.

ECA is working with sister UN agencies, bilateral and multilateral partners to align global climate goals to the continent’s action agenda.

Through its climate think tank, African Climate Policy Centre (ACPC) based in Ethiopia’s capital Addis Ababa, ECA has been playing a leading role in enhancing the efforts of fighting against climate change in Africa, by aligning global climate goals to the continent’s action agenda.

The “State of the Global Climate Report 2020” emphasizes the critical need for world leaders to increase ambitions on climate action to curb emissions.

“This report is part of the effort to close this gap,” said Songwe, reiterating the contribution of ECA to the production of the report through ACPC.

The report seeks to highlight the nexus between climate change and development, and to emphasize that building forward better from the COVID-19 pandemic requires a development approach that is green, sustainable and climate resilient, informed by the best available science.

The “State of the Global Climate Report 2020” stratifies the need for a development approach that is green-oriented.

ACPC has emboldened the member states in raising their ambitions towards the global net-zero emissions targets by assisting them in revising their nationally determined contributions (NDCs) in line with the Paris Agreement and ahead of the global stocktake scheduled for 2023.

The focus of the ACPC framework is on ensuring that the NDC is integrated into wider development policy and practice.

Liberia, Zimbabwe, and Malawi are among the countries benefiting from ACPC’s support on climate change mainstreaming.

Building the resilience of African economies, societies and ecosystems to climate change is now a core pillar of the ACPC as it helps implement the continent’s climate action blueprint.

Xinhua News Agency