Regional implications of the AGF recommendations: Africa

The document outlines Africa's high vulnerability to climate change and its significant investment gaps in adaptation and mitigation. It evaluates the AGF's proposal to mobilise US$100 billion annually by 2020, highlighting potential public funding sources like carbon taxes and fossil fuel subsidy redirection, while stressing the need for grants for adaptation and regulatory reforms to attract private investment in carbon markets.

• Africa is the most vulnerable continent to the physical impacts of climate change, with nearly 50% of its population living in the most highly exposed countries and 45% in countries with the lowest adaptive capacity.
• There is a massive shortfall in climate investment; by 2030, annual adaptation costs may reach US$18–19 billion, yet cumulative investment to date has been less than US$150 million. Annual mitigation requirements are approximately US$13 billion, but cumulative investment from 2003–2010 was under US$2 billion.
• Adaptation funding for Africa must primarily consist of public grants because many adaptation measures do not provide returns for private investors, particularly in least developed countries (LDCs).
• The AGF identifies three primary public funding instruments to reach the US$100 billion target: auctioning emission allowances or new carbon taxes (est. US$30 billion/year), redirecting fossil fuel subsidies (est. US$10–15 billion/year), and carbon pricing for international transport (est. US$10 billion/year).
• Africa's participation in carbon markets is currently low; despite having nearly 12% of the Clean Development Mechanism's (CDM) market potential, it has captured just over 3%. This is attributed to a challenging business environment and the small scale of projects.
• To ensure reliable revenue from carbon-based mechanisms, developed countries must implement robust, legally binding emission-reduction targets that support a carbon price of US$20–25 per tonne.

APA

Fankhauser, S., & Ward, J. (2010). Regional implications of the AGF recommendations: Africa. Climate and Development Knowledge Network. http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/AGF-Implications-Africa-CDKN-Special-Briefing-small1.pdf

Chicago

Fankhauser, Sam, and John Ward. Regional implications of the AGF recommendations: Africa. Climate and Development Knowledge Network, 2010. http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/AGF-Implications-Africa-CDKN-Special-Briefing-small1.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Fankhauser |first1=Sam |last2=Ward |first2=John |title=Regional implications of the AGF recommendations: Africa |publisher=Climate and Development Knowledge Network |date=November 2010 |url=http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/AGF-Implications-Africa-CDKN-Special-Briefing-small1.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{fankhauser2010regional, author = {Fankhauser, Sam and Ward, John}, title = {{Regional implications of the AGF recommendations: Africa}}, institution = {Climate and Development Knowledge Network}, year = {2010}, month = nov, url = {http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/AGF-Implications-Africa-CDKN-Special-Briefing-small1.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }