Charm El-Cheikh/PAMACC: On savait tout du Nil.
Ce fleuve africain apporte aux égyptiens tout ce dont ils ont besoin : de l’eau en abondance, le poisson et le gibier, le papyrus des marécages et bien sûr un sol fertile.
Avec, à peu près, les mêmes potentialités, l’idée que la vallée de l’Ouémé au Bénin vient en seconde position après le Nil est régulièrement soulignée. Aux populations des quatre communes qu’elle couvre, à savoir : Bonou, Adjohoun, Aguégués, Dangbo, la Vallée de l’Ouémé apporte aussi, gît, gibier et couvert et aurait pu faire plus, si les efforts qui sont consentis pour son exploitation ne sont pas souvent limités ou confrontés à d’autres aléas.
Quoi de plus normal alors, qu’une conférence sur le climat, notamment la COP27, qui se tient en Egypte, dans un pays qui abrite le Nil, ne puisse pas susciter les envies des différents maires de ces communes en vue d’aller voir de leurs yeux l’exploitation qui est faite du Nil ? L’enjeu, il est de taille et est en train de se réaliser grâce à Eric Houdo dont efforts pour le développement de sa vallée n’est plus à démontrer.
Thierry Tolégbé, maire de Bonou, François Zannou-Agbo, maire d’Adjohoun, Maoudo Dossou, maire de Dangbo et Marc Gandonou, maire des Aguégués sont depuis quelques jours à Charm El Cheihk, où se tiennent les travaux de la vingt septième conférence sur le climat.
Mais en attendant, qu’ils se rendent dans le bassin du Nil, inscrit à l’agenda de leur voyage, les maires de ces quatre communes de la Vallée de l’Ouémé participent à quelques évènements.
Celui de ce jour samedi 12 novembre 2022 au Africa Pavillon, et auquel ces maires ont pris part, est organisé par la BAD, la Banque Africaine de développement. Il a pour thème : Mobiliser des financements innovants pour construire des systèmes alimentaires résilients et durables sur le continent africain.
L’enjeu de l’évènement
Il s’agit pour la Banque Africaine de Développement, et surtout de son Président, le Dr Akinwumi Adesina, d’attirer l’attention, à l’occasion de cet évènement de haut niveau sur l’adaptation et l’agriculture à la COP27, sur les chocs répétés subis par l’agriculture, ces dernières années sur le continent africain.
Le Dr Adesina en cite trois : « En raison des perturbations de la pandémie de COVID19 et des sècheresses dues aux changements climatiques et puis la guerre en Ukraine, soixante-dix (70) millions d’africains pourraient s’ajouter aux quarante-six (46) millions d’affamés ».
La raison, selon le Président de la BAD, je cite : « De nombreux pays africains dépendent de l’Ukraine et de la Russie pour le blé, le maïs, l’huile de tournesol et l’orge ». Il faut donc renverser la tendance.
« En réponse à cette crise, la Banque Africaine de Développement (BAD) a créé la facilité africaine de production alimentaire d’urgence (AEFPF) pour atténuer les pénuries de nourriture et d’intrants », a indiqué Adesina, au cours de son intervention.
Il faut souligner que l’AEFPF est basée sur le programme phare de Feed Africa, Technologies pour la Transformation de l’Agriculture Africaine (TAAT) qui a permis de fournir des variétés de blé tolérantes à la chaleur, des variétés de maïs tolérantes à la sècheresse et des variétés de riz à haut rendement à onze (11) millions d’agriculteurs au cours des trois dernières années.
Il s’agit, à terme de rendre résilients les systèmes de production en Afrique en vue d’éviter les différents chocs qui viennent le fragiliser.
La finalité de l’évènement
En réunissant autour de lui, plusieurs ministres africains de l’agriculture, notamment, Owosu Afriyie Akoto du Ghana, Ali Ngouille Ndiaye du Sénégal, Abu Karim de la Sierra Leone, Josefa Sacko, le Commissaire pour l’agriculture et au développement rural et puis Anne Beathe Tvinnereim, Ministre du développement International de la Norvège, Adésina, avait à cœur d’envoyer un message fort à la COP27, « le continent africain a besoin de financements supplémentaires pour l’adaptation immédiate à long terme de son agriculture en vue de faire face aux changements climatiques et aux effets de la guerre en Ukraine. »
Il est compris, dès lors, tout le sens du combat de la société civile africaine, principalement, celui de l’Alliance Panafricaine pour la Justice Climatique (PACJA) pour la mise en œuvre à la COP27, du mécanisme de Varsovie sur les pertes et dommages.
C’est une bonne piste pour faire rentrer de l’argent sur le continent, qui sans doute sera orienté vers l’adaptation de son agriculture. C’est, donc, avec beaucoup d’intérêts et de sérieux que les quatre maires de la vallée de l’Ouémé ont suivi ces différents échanges.
Leur rencontre, quoique brève, avec le Président de la BAD, le Docteur Adesina Akinwumi, ont renforcé leurs engagements vis-à-vis de leurs terroirs. Verbatim : « Nous sommes heureux d’avoir rencontré le Président de la BAD et d’avoir eu l’assurance que le Projet d’Appui aux investissements agricoles de la vallée (PAIA-VO) sera renforcé.
Il s’agit, aujourd’hui, de faire en sorte que le Nil et la vallée de l’Ouémé permettent au continent africain d’être autosuffisant », Thiérry Tolégbé, maire de Bonou.
« Dans la vallée de l’Ouémé, il y a des terres qui n’ont jamais reçues un coup de pioche. Il nous faut divers projets de développement pour nous permettre de nourrir les populations de nos contrées. Merci à la BAD et à son Président pour tout ce qu’ils font déjà », François Zannou Agbo, maire d’Adjohoun.
« L’agriculture assure l’alimentation. Et comme l’a dit le Président de la BAD, il nous faut désormais transformer nos produits. Le Nil et la vallée de l’Ouémé ont ce potentiel. On peut avoir du pain à base de manioc et ne pas toujours attendre le blé », Maoudo Djossou, maire de Dangbo.
« Pour assurer l’autosuffisance alimentaire, Je vois jusqu’à quel niveau le financement de l’agriculture est très important. On a eu l’occasion de discuter avec le Président de la BAD, que je remercie pour tout ce qu’il faisait déjà et pour ce qu’il fera surtout pour appuyer les pouvoirs locaux », Marc Gandonou, maire d’Aguégués.
Ainsi, les maires de la vallée de l’Ouémé à la COP27, l’opportunité est unique. Il s’agit de voir et d’apprendre. Il s’agit de faire en sorte que ça ne soit qu’une simple balade et que les retombées soient à la taille de l’enjeu que constitue le développement des communes de la Vallée.
Sharm El-Sheik/PAMACC: Summary: The initiative unlocks an additional $15 billion investment announced for Nexus of Food, Water & Energy. It will fund the implementation of one main energy project (USD 10 billion), five food security and agriculture projects, and three irrigation and water projects.
The first fruits of a relentless push by the African Civil Society groups for the World to pay up the much-needed Climate Adaptation Finance required by vulnerable countries in the continent is finally beginning to trickle slowly in “small dollar bills”.
The COP27 President, H.E. Sameh Shoukry and US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate, John Kerry, announced the initiative to accelerate adaptation in the African continent to save millions of lives and livelihoods.
The package worth $150 Billion was announced at a special session on "Advancing Adaptation Action in Africa" co-hosted by H.E. Sameh Shoukry, COP27 President, and the United States Special Presidential Envoy for Climate, John Kerry.
COP President Shoukry speaking at the events, said: “The key challenge for African countries is to access funding for climate action. Recognizing that progress towards adapting to climate consequences and enhancing resilience is crucially needed, we launched here at COP27 the Sharm-El-Sheikh Adaptation Agenda a couple of days ago.”
This agenda comprises a total of 30 global adaptation outcome targets by 2030 that are urgently needed to address the adaptation gap and increase the resilience of 4 billion people through accelerating transformation across five impact systems: food and agriculture, water and nature, coastal and oceans, human settlements, and infrastructure.
COP27 President H.E, Shoukry further said, “Egypt, as COP27 President and as an African nation, is well aware of the adaptation challenges facing our continent, and we are pleased to have collaborated over the past year with the United States to develop a diverse package of support for Africa in the field of adaptation and resilience.”
The Adaptation in Africa initiative, previously announced in June 2022 by President Biden and President El-Sisi, has the potential to result in USD 4-10 benefits for every dollar invested. It now includes support from the US for $13.6 million for a Systematic Observations Financing Facility that will help fill weather, water, and climate observation gaps in Africa.
$15 million to support the co-development and deployment of early-warning systems in Africa to cut the number of people who need emergency assistance in half by 2030 - and from 200 million to just 10 million by 2050.
Another $10 million to support the capacity building of Africa’s current and future decision-makers. This includes $10 million to support the launch of a new adaptation centre in Egypt – the Cairo Center for Learning and Excellence on Adaptation and Resilience, announced by Egypt, to build adaptation capacity across Africa.
There is also $2 million to the Resilience and Adaptation Mainstreaming Program to build the capacity of governments to manage climate risks and access finance. Meanwhile, $3.5 million in support for the Least Developed Countries Initiative for Effective Adaptation & Resilience will help African countries like Uganda, Malawi, Gambia, and Burkina Faso to enhance access to adaptation finance for the most vulnerable.
Expanding access to risk-based insurance for the most vulnerable by supporting regional risk insurance pools, including contributing $12 million to the Africa Disaster Risk Financing Program and $12 million to ARC Ltd.
$25 million to the African Union’s flagship Africa Adaptation Initiative (AAI), which is hosted by the Egyptian government, to launch the AAI Food Security Accelerator, which will dramatically speed- up and scale up private sector investments in climate-resilient food security in Africa.
Encouraging private sector innovation through $3.8 million to CRAFT TA Facility and $2 million to launch an adaptation window of the Global Innovation Lab for Climate Finance to help develop new financial instruments and mechanisms to harness private investment in adaptation.
Special Envoy Kerry said: “We are completely committed to working together with our partners to support vulnerable communities in their efforts to, sadly, have to adapt to the impacts of climate change. Something that everyone, whether in developed, developing or emerging economies are impacted by.”
Earlier this week, in a statement released via the US Embassy in Cairo, Kerry stated that “unprecedented” investment in clean energy is needed to limit warming to 1.5°C and avert catastrophic climate impacts on communities worldwide. His statement added that “annual clean energy investment must triple to $4.2 trillion by 2030”, with over half of that investment needed for emerging and developing economies.
Early on Wednesday of the first weeks of COP27 talks, China said it would not pay a single small dollar bill into the climate loss and damage fund for developing nations after small island nations pinned it for responsibility as a high carbon emitter at the U.N. Climate Change Conference in Egypt.
That was the first time developing nations like China and India were added to the list of countries financially accountable for higher global carbon emissions.
In response, Chinese climate envoy Xie Zhenhua said, “Beijing would support such a mechanism for the payment of loss and damage, but would not pay cash into the loss and damage fund,” adding that his nation “is not obliged to contribute.”
Developing nations are seeking such funds from developed countries as reparations for economic and non-economic losses they have suffered under the speeding wrath of climate change.
The Pan African Media Alliance on Climate Change (PAMACC) has learned that there is a legal burden to prove for developing nations to derive reparations for Climate loss and damage with pinpoint evidence that economic loss or damage suffered was a direct result of pollution or emission event in that particular developed country.
This makes it a tall order for developing nations to hold developed nations to account for loss and damages as well as human rights violations occasioned by weather disasters in their nations.
Sharm El-Sheik/PAMACC: Summary: The initiative unlocks an additional $15 billion investment announced for Nexus of Food, Water & Energy. It will fund the implementation of one main energy project (USD 10 billion), five food security and agriculture projects, and three irrigation and water projects.
The first fruits of a relentless push by the African Civil Society groups for the World to pay up the much-needed Climate Adaptation Finance required by vulnerable countries in the continent is finally beginning to trickle slowly in “small dollar bills”.
The COP27 President, H.E. Sameh Shoukry and US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate, John Kerry, announced the initiative to accelerate adaptation in the African continent to save millions of lives and livelihoods.
The package worth $150 Billion was announced at a special session on "Advancing Adaptation Action in Africa" co-hosted by H.E. Sameh Shoukry, COP27 President, and the United States Special Presidential Envoy for Climate, John Kerry.
COP President Shoukry speaking at the events, said: “The key challenge for African countries is to access funding for climate action. Recognizing that progress towards adapting to climate consequences and enhancing resilience is crucially needed, we launched here at COP27 the Sharm-El-Sheikh Adaptation Agenda a couple of days ago.”
This agenda comprises a total of 30 global adaptation outcome targets by 2030 that are urgently needed to address the adaptation gap and increase the resilience of 4 billion people through accelerating transformation across five impact systems: food and agriculture, water and nature, coastal and oceans, human settlements, and infrastructure.
COP27 President H.E, Shoukry further said, “Egypt, as COP27 President and as an African nation, is well aware of the adaptation challenges facing our continent, and we are pleased to have collaborated over the past year with the United States to develop a diverse package of support for Africa in the field of adaptation and resilience.”
The Adaptation in Africa initiative, previously announced in June 2022 by President Biden and President El-Sisi, has the potential to result in USD 4-10 benefits for every dollar invested. It now includes support from the US for $13.6 million for a Systematic Observations Financing Facility that will help fill weather, water, and climate observation gaps in Africa.
$15 million to support the co-development and deployment of early-warning systems in Africa to cut the number of people who need emergency assistance in half by 2030 - and from 200 million to just 10 million by 2050.
Another $10 million to support the capacity building of Africa’s current and future decision-makers. This includes $10 million to support the launch of a new adaptation centre in Egypt – the Cairo Center for Learning and Excellence on Adaptation and Resilience, announced by Egypt, to build adaptation capacity across Africa.
There is also $2 million to the Resilience and Adaptation Mainstreaming Program to build the capacity of governments to manage climate risks and access finance. Meanwhile, $3.5 million in support for the Least Developed Countries Initiative for Effective Adaptation & Resilience will help African countries like Uganda, Malawi, Gambia, and Burkina Faso to enhance access to adaptation finance for the most vulnerable.
Expanding access to risk-based insurance for the most vulnerable by supporting regional risk insurance pools, including contributing $12 million to the Africa Disaster Risk Financing Program and $12 million to ARC Ltd.
$25 million to the African Union’s flagship Africa Adaptation Initiative (AAI), which is hosted by the Egyptian government, to launch the AAI Food Security Accelerator, which will dramatically speed- up and scale up private sector investments in climate-resilient food security in Africa.
Encouraging private sector innovation through $3.8 million to CRAFT TA Facility and $2 million to launch an adaptation window of the Global Innovation Lab for Climate Finance to help develop new financial instruments and mechanisms to harness private investment in adaptation.
Special Envoy Kerry said: “We are completely committed to working together with our partners to support vulnerable communities in their efforts to, sadly, have to adapt to the impacts of climate change. Something that everyone, whether in developed, developing or emerging economies are impacted by.”
Earlier this week, in a statement released via the US Embassy in Cairo, Kerry stated that “unprecedented” investment in clean energy is needed to limit warming to 1.5°C and avert catastrophic climate impacts on communities worldwide. His statement added that “annual clean energy investment must triple to $4.2 trillion by 2030”, with over half of that investment needed for emerging and developing economies.
Early on Wednesday of the first weeks of COP27 talks, China said it would not pay a single small dollar bill into the climate loss and damage fund for developing nations after small island nations pinned it for responsibility as a high carbon emitter at the U.N. Climate Change Conference in Egypt.
That was the first time developing nations like China and India were added to the list of countries financially accountable for higher global carbon emissions.
In response, Chinese climate envoy Xie Zhenhua said, “Beijing would support such a mechanism for the payment of loss and damage, but would not pay cash into the loss and damage fund,” adding that his nation “is not obliged to contribute.”
Developing nations are seeking such funds from developed countries as reparations for economic and non-economic losses they have suffered under the speeding wrath of climate change.
The Pan African Media Alliance on Climate Change (PAMACC) has learned that there is a legal burden to prove for developing nations to derive reparations for Climate loss and damage with pinpoint evidence that economic loss or damage suffered was a direct result of pollution or emission event in that particular developed country.
This makes it a tall order for developing nations to hold developed nations to account for loss and damages as well as human rights violations occasioned by weather disasters in their nations.
Sharm El-Sheikh/PAMACC Climate Finance for the transformation of agriculture and food systems in some of the most vulnerable communities is set to find a financial and non-financial boost from the 27th Conference of Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention currently happening in Egypt.
In a new initiative launched at COP27 during the first week of talks, the UN Food Agency, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), says the transformation of agrifood systems will deliver triple wins for people, climate action and nature.
A statement from the agency states that “the initiative will be supported by countries through its multi-stakeholder partnerships that will ensure food systems are reinforced through climate policies that contribute to concrete actions in support of adaptation to maintain a 1.5-degree pathway for food and economic security.”
COP27 President H.E. Sameh Shoukry said: “The impact of climate change is disproportionately impacting vulnerable communities worldwide. To address this imbalance, we need to develop sustainable farming and food systems and meet the urgent needs of food-importing developing countries.”
Technically known as the Food and Agriculture for Sustainable Transformation (FAST), FAO will champion the mobilization of state and non-state actors to unlock finance flows for increasing climate resilience and implementing urgently needed transformation across agrifood systems.
FAO’s Deputy Director General Maria Helena Semedo stated that “bold, transformative actions are needed to boost Agrifood system transformation, support countries and ensure that resources reach food producers across the value chain.”
Meanwhile, the UNFCCC Executive Secretary, Mr Simon Stiell, added that “We need to undertake a thorough overhaul of our food systems, which is another way of saying our relationship with the natural world. There is only one way to achieve this. It can be summarized in one single world: implementation.”
COP27 has been strategically named as the African COP – the COP for the Implementation of the 2015 Paris Agreement in which countries that have ratified the agreement committed themselves to not only provide the Finances but also take differentiated Nationally Determined Contributions aimed at limiting global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius by the end of this century.
However, the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report says full implementation of the total sums of the Nationally Determined Contributions will still make the World miss the targeted 1.5 degrees Celsius. This triggered pleas for raising national ambitions and complete transitions in energy and agrifood systems, amongst others.
Opening COP27, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres made it clear that the African Continent, considered the most vulnerable and most affected by climate change, should be insulated by a continent-wide early warning system over the next five years to improve its adaptive capacity in all sectors.
Against this backdrop, some of the non-state actors participating in the Conference of Parties, including the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA), made it clear towards the end of the first week of negotiations that enough talking has been done about ramping up Climate Finance for the global South.
“Our aspirations for the recognition of Africa as the region with special needs and circumstances at this COP has dropped again as it happened in Glasgow at the agenda stage; because Africa has no power to decide what agenda will or will not be there on the COP table.” Dr Mithika Mwenda, the Executive Director of PACJA, stated during the global March for Climate Justice on Saturday.
According to Dr Mwenda, “even the issue of loss and damage, which gained admission into the COP27 agenda early this week, has been deferred to 2024 for a decision to be taken on it. And for us, this is already a disappointment.”
The Civil Society fraternity from the global North boycotted the march citing Egyptian Police brutality and the scorching African heat for their boycott.
The concept of transforming agrifood systems entails supporting the acceleration of the UN 2030 Agenda by transitioning towards more efficient, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable agri-food systems for better production, nutrition, a better environment, and a better life.
As COP27 talks enter the critical stage for government Ministers to join in, the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance, the loudest civil microphone carrying holding the hopes and frustrations of the African farmer, repeatedly made it clear that access to Finance should not be handled with kid's gloves.
As COP27 negotiating texts are being drafted, it is now known that 38 million people are facing severe starvation sparked by droughts and floods across Africa this year alone. 600 million others are deeply entrenched in energy poverty.
According to FAO, FAST will focus on three priorities for urgent actions on Climate Change: emboldening access to Finance through enhancing countries’ capacities to identify and increase access to climate finance and investment from the different pools.
Second, enhancing knowledge and capacity through the provision of the necessary analyses, developing voluntary guidelines and supporting capacity development of countries; and thirdly; policy Support and Dialogue to ensure agrifood systems are fully embedded in climate change policies, such as Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC), National Adaptation Plans (NAP) or Long-term Low Emissions and Development Strategies (LT-LEDS).
