The African Development Bank is actively supporting African nations in their efforts to combat climate change. With many countries facing severe impacts from climate-related events, the bank provides financial resources and initiatives aimed at enhancing resilience and promoting sustainable development. This commitment is crucial as the continent grapples with limited funding and significant loss.
Eight out of the ten countries most affected by climate change are in Africa. Droughts, hurricanes, and floods threaten agricultural production, exposing populations to food insecurity and climate-induced migration, while placing pressure on vital sectors for the continent’s development, leading to significant public spending displacement. Despite resource shortages, Africa is striving to adapt to the effects of climate change. The continent receives less than three percent of global climate financing, even though it loses between seven and fifteen percent of its GDP due to climate change.
Given the severity of the climate crisis, particularly for the most vulnerable countries, the African Development Bank Group, the leading development finance institution in Africa, is firmly committed to supporting African nations in enhancing their resilience to climate change and facilitating their transition to low-carbon development pathways. Through various climate financing initiatives and tools, the bank assists African countries in accessing direct and flexible resources to fulfill their climate commitments under the Paris Agreement, including Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and National Adaptation Plans (NAPs).
As Belém, a major Brazilian city located in the heart of the Amazon rainforest, prepares to host the 30th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30) from November 10 to 21, 2025, this meeting is expected to be crucial for the future of the Paris Agreement—ten years after the world pledged to keep global warming below the critical threshold of 1.5 degrees Celsius.
Between 50,000 and 60,000 delegates—comprising heads of state, ministers, experts, financial actors, the private sector, civil society, and indigenous communities—are expected to gather in the capital of Pará in an effort to revive global climate momentum. The main priorities for this conference include accelerating the energy transition, ensuring a just transition for the most vulnerable countries, and, most importantly, mobilizing extensive funding for climate activities benefiting developing economies.
The Climate Investment Fund (CIF) is one of the oldest mechanisms for financing climate activities still operational within the bank. With a budget of $12.5 billion, this fund, established in 2008, has supported 47 investment plans and approved 45 projects since its inception, providing over $1 billion in financing to the bank. By utilizing resources from the Climate Investment Fund, the bank has also mobilized an additional $2.42 billion in co-financing.
This funding has enabled low- and middle-income African countries to accelerate their climate adaptation efforts through programs in clean technology, access to clean energy, enhancing climate resilience, and sustainable forestry.
In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the fund has enabled Dorcas Chabu to realize her childhood dream of restoring forests in her homeland. After a long wait, she now manages a farm located about 20 kilometers from Mbujimayi, in the central part of the country. Dorcas states, “This was savanna everywhere. But I turned it into a forest. It is made by my hands! Everyone who passes here appreciates it. This makes me happy.”
Since 2021, Dorcas has planted a lush forest covering 50 hectares with support from the Integrated REDD+ Project in the Mbujimayi, Kananga, and Kisangani basins (PIREDD-MBKIS), which has addressed the main drivers of deforestation and degradation in the three provinces of the country, funded with €21.5 million from the African Development Bank as part of the Forest Investment Program (FIP).
The Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa (SEFA), established in 2011, is a key facility for developing blended finance initiatives for clean energy under the auspices of the African Development Bank, providing catalytic financing to unlock private sector investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency. The fund also offers technical assistance and blended financing tools to remove market barriers, build more resilient project pipelines, and improve risk-return profiles for individual investments. The fund supports interventions across three strategic priorities: green baseload power generation, green mini-grids, and energy efficiency.
The Iloti Solar Power Project, with a capacity of 32 megawatts in Zambia, is one of over 100 projects supported by the fund since its inception. In June 2025, the fund committed to contributing $8 million from a total financing package of $26.5 million for this project, demonstrating its commitment to innovative solutions that enhance the energy transition in Africa. The project, led by an independent power producer (IPP) in western Zambia, will provide electricity through the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP) under a market-based power purchase agreement with regional electricity companies.
The Iloti Solar Power Project is one of over 100 projects supported by the Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa since its establishment. In June 2025, the fund committed to contributing $8 million as part of a total financing package of $26.5 million for this project, reaffirming its commitment to innovative solutions that support the energy transition in Africa. The project, managed by an independent power producer in western Zambia, will supply electricity through the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP) under a market-based power purchase agreement with GreenCo Power Services, a regional electricity trading company. This project will serve as a model for other African countries seeking to attract private capital and enhance regional energy integration.
Building resilience
In 2014, the African Development Bank launched the Africa Climate Change Fund (ACCF). After 11 years, this multi-donor trust fund enhances climate resilience led by local communities across the continent. Approximately 33 projects have received funding totaling $40.64 million since its launch.
In Djibouti, Asia Obakar Hassan, a mother from the village of Kalaf, embodies the profound transformation witnessed in part of the northern countryside, driven by a regional project implemented by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and funded by the African Development Bank through the fund. Mrs. Hassan states, “Previously, farming was an impossible dream. Today, I feed my children thanks to this land.”
This impact is also evident in projects supported by the African Circular Economy Fund (ACEF). This fund, the only trust fund dedicated exclusively to integrating the circular economy as a strategy for green and inclusive growth in Africa, was established by the African Development Bank in 2022, with support from the Government of Finland, the Nordic Development Fund, and since 2024, the Coca-Cola Foundation.
Officials from the bank recently visited Rwanda to meet young innovators funded by the African Circular Economy Fund. Among them were Trezor Gashonga and Rafiki Gatsinzi, co-founders of Incuti Foods, which produces chili sauces, providing farmers with a stable market and a way to reduce post-harvest losses—an essential intervention in a country where approximately three million tons of food are wasted annually. Their sauces are even used in trendy cocktails in upscale Kigali bars, demonstrating that the circular economy can seamlessly integrate into urban culture.
The African Development Fund’s Climate Action Window: A New Key Player
In 2022, the African Development Fund, the concessional financing arm of the bank group, launched the Climate Action Window to provide concessional financing to the most vulnerable African countries for climate adaptation and mitigation and technical support. With funding of $429 million, this window aims to mobilize $4 billion by the end of 2025 and $13 billion in the long term, providing rapid and sustainable access to climate finance.
In 2024, the Board of Directors of the African Development Bank approved over $31 million in funding through the Climate Action Window to enhance climate adaptation in Sierra Leone, South Sudan, Djibouti, and Madagascar. This project is expected to contribute to a reduction of approximately 720,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions and create 180,000 direct jobs, with a particular focus on women and youth. Additionally, 90,000 farmers will be trained in climate-smart agricultural practices.
Anthony Nyong, Director of Climate Change and Green Growth at the African Development Bank, stated, “These initiatives are not only responding to climate change but also empowering communities to take control of their future. They demonstrate that adaptation financing can and should be directed to vulnerable communities that need it most.”
Anthony added that “the Climate Action Window is not just a financing mechanism; it is a lifeline for communities facing the harsh realities of climate change daily.”
Climate change poses a significant threat to Africa, with many nations experiencing severe droughts, floods, and other extreme weather events. Despite contributing the least to global emissions, African countries are among the most affected, facing challenges such as food insecurity and economic instability.
The African Development Bank has recognized the urgency of this crisis and has initiated various funding mechanisms to assist vulnerable nations in adapting to climate impacts and transitioning to sustainable development paths.
