ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (PAMACC News) –  United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has designated Abdalla Hamdok of Sudan as Acting Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA).

Mr. Hamdok takes the reigns effective 1 November 2016, following the departure of Carlos Lopes of Guinea-Bissau on 31 October.  Mr. Lopes served the ECA for four years with commitment and dedication and leaves the United Nations after 28 years of service in various capacities.

With over 30 years’ experience in the areas of public sector reforms, governance, regional integration and resource management, Mr. Hamdok has headed major portfolios, addressing diverse development challenges of the African policy landscape.

Mr. Hamdok has served as Deputy Executive Secretary and Chief Economist of the ECA since 2011 prior to which, he successfully headed ECA’s portfolios of activities on development policy management, NEPAD and regional integration, and governance and public administration.

From 2003-2008, he served the International IDEA as its Regional Director for Africa and the Middle East.

His earlier career saw him move progressively into key senior positions in the Public and Private Sector. He held the positions of Chief Technical Advisor (1995-1997) at the International Labour Organization, Zimbabwe; Principal Policy Economist (1997-2001) at the African Development Bank, Cote d’Ivoire; Head of the Public Sector Group and Member of the management committee (1993-1995) at Deloitte & Touche Management Consultants, Zimbabwe; and Senior Official (1981-1987) at the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning of Sudan.

Abdalla Hamdok holds a PhD and MA in Economics from the School of Economic Studies, University of Manchester, UK and a BSc. (honours) from the University of Khartoum, Sudan.

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (PAMACC News) –  United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has designated Abdalla Hamdok of Sudan as Acting Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA).

Mr. Hamdok takes the reigns effective 1 November 2016, following the departure of Carlos Lopes of Guinea-Bissau on 31 October.  Mr. Lopes served the ECA for four years with commitment and dedication and leaves the United Nations after 28 years of service in various capacities.

With over 30 years’ experience in the areas of public sector reforms, governance, regional integration and resource management, Mr. Hamdok has headed major portfolios, addressing diverse development challenges of the African policy landscape.

Mr. Hamdok has served as Deputy Executive Secretary and Chief Economist of the ECA since 2011 prior to which, he successfully headed ECA’s portfolios of activities on development policy management, NEPAD and regional integration, and governance and public administration.

From 2003-2008, he served the International IDEA as its Regional Director for Africa and the Middle East.

His earlier career saw him move progressively into key senior positions in the Public and Private Sector. He held the positions of Chief Technical Advisor (1995-1997) at the International Labour Organization, Zimbabwe; Principal Policy Economist (1997-2001) at the African Development Bank, Cote d’Ivoire; Head of the Public Sector Group and Member of the management committee (1993-1995) at Deloitte & Touche Management Consultants, Zimbabwe; and Senior Official (1981-1987) at the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning of Sudan.

Abdalla Hamdok holds a PhD and MA in Economics from the School of Economic Studies, University of Manchester, UK and a BSc. (honours) from the University of Khartoum, Sudan.

ADDIS ABABA (PAMACC News) - The African Development Bank (AfDB) has expressed its commitment to sustaining and extending ongoing collaboration with African countries with a view to deepening partnerships and investments that help in addressing the impacts of climate change and variability.
 
Acting Vice President of the bank, Dr. Kapil Kapoor stated this at the opening plenary of the 6th conference on Climate Change and Development in Africa (CCDA-VI) holding in the Ethiopian capital city, Addis Ababa.
 
Recalling the Banks’ Climate Action Plan for the period 2011 -2015 which prioritised mitigation, adaptation and climate finance as key pillars, Dr. Kapoor stated that approximately 260 projects with climate relevant components were implemented and $12 billion was channeled as climate finance.
 
For the period 2016 -2020, Dr. Kapoor said AfDB will be even more ambitious.

The bank will explore modalities for achieving the adaptation goal, the adequacy and effectiveness of climate finance, capacity building and technology transfer — building technical skills so that African economies can realize their full potential for adaptation in high-technology sectors.
 
“Under this plan, the Bank will nearly triple its annual climate financing to reach $5 billion a year by 2020,” the AfDB Vice President declared.
 
The bank will further examine the implication of the Paris Agreement on Africa’s future economic growth and sustainable development agenda while pursuing agriculture initiatives that complement investment actions and commitments of African countries expressed as national determined contributions (NDCs).
 
The AfDB however called on African countries to identify viable and transformative investment opportunities, reform institutions to make them more efficient, and build capacity to access and absorb climate finance — in readiness to take advantage of the opportunities presented by the Paris agreement, to leapfrog technologies and transition to low-Carbon, Climate-resilient development.
 
Organised by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) in collaboration with ClimDev Partner organisations, the sixth Climate Change Development in Africa conference (CCDA VI) aims to facilitate science-policy dialogue and provide a marketplace for innovative solutions that integrate climate change into development processes.
 
With “The Paris Agreement on climate change: What next for Africa”as central theme, the CCDA-VI aspires to understand the implications, nuances, challenges and opportunities of implementing the Paris Agreement for Africa in the context of the continent’s development priorities.

The conference which ends on the 20th of October 2016 will examine the implications of the Paris Agreement for Africa’s future economic growth and sustainable development agenda; deepen an understanding of the nuances in the decisions of COP21, particularly with regard to the means of implementation (capacity, finance and technology transfer), as well as the domestication of the Agreement in Africa in alignment with the national development priorities of African countries; and identify strategies for implementing the Agreement especially through pan-African initiatives and institutions, public-private partnerships, and the engagement of State and non-State actors.

ADDIS ABABA (PAMACC News) - The African Development Bank (AfDB) has expressed its commitment to sustaining and extending ongoing collaboration with African countries with a view to deepening partnerships and investments that help in addressing the impacts of climate change and variability.
 
Acting Vice President of the bank, Dr. Kapil Kapoor stated this at the opening plenary of the 6th conference on Climate Change and Development in Africa (CCDA-VI) holding in the Ethiopian capital city, Addis Ababa.
 
Recalling the Banks’ Climate Action Plan for the period 2011 -2015 which prioritised mitigation, adaptation and climate finance as key pillars, Dr. Kapoor stated that approximately 260 projects with climate relevant components were implemented and $12 billion was channeled as climate finance.
 
For the period 2016 -2020, Dr. Kapoor said AfDB will be even more ambitious.

The bank will explore modalities for achieving the adaptation goal, the adequacy and effectiveness of climate finance, capacity building and technology transfer — building technical skills so that African economies can realize their full potential for adaptation in high-technology sectors.
 
“Under this plan, the Bank will nearly triple its annual climate financing to reach $5 billion a year by 2020,” the AfDB Vice President declared.
 
The bank will further examine the implication of the Paris Agreement on Africa’s future economic growth and sustainable development agenda while pursuing agriculture initiatives that complement investment actions and commitments of African countries expressed as national determined contributions (NDCs).
 
The AfDB however called on African countries to identify viable and transformative investment opportunities, reform institutions to make them more efficient, and build capacity to access and absorb climate finance — in readiness to take advantage of the opportunities presented by the Paris agreement, to leapfrog technologies and transition to low-Carbon, Climate-resilient development.
 
Organised by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) in collaboration with ClimDev Partner organisations, the sixth Climate Change Development in Africa conference (CCDA VI) aims to facilitate science-policy dialogue and provide a marketplace for innovative solutions that integrate climate change into development processes.
 
With “The Paris Agreement on climate change: What next for Africa”as central theme, the CCDA-VI aspires to understand the implications, nuances, challenges and opportunities of implementing the Paris Agreement for Africa in the context of the continent’s development priorities.

The conference which ends on the 20th of October 2016 will examine the implications of the Paris Agreement for Africa’s future economic growth and sustainable development agenda; deepen an understanding of the nuances in the decisions of COP21, particularly with regard to the means of implementation (capacity, finance and technology transfer), as well as the domestication of the Agreement in Africa in alignment with the national development priorities of African countries; and identify strategies for implementing the Agreement especially through pan-African initiatives and institutions, public-private partnerships, and the engagement of State and non-State actors.