Landscape of Climate Finance in Africa

This report by the Climate Policy Initiative analyzes the climate finance landscape in Africa, highlighting a significant gap between the funding required to meet Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and actual annual flows. It examines the distribution of finance across regions and sectors, the role of public versus private investment, and provides recommendations to scale up funding through blended finance, improved data tracking, and capacity building.

• Africa faces a massive climate finance deficit, requiring USD 2.8 trillion between 2020-2030 to implement its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement. On an annual basis, the continent needs USD 277 billion to meet 2030 goals, but actual annual climate finance flows are only USD 30 billion.
• Investment gaps vary by region, with the Southern African region experiencing the largest absolute gap, primarily due to South Africa's annual need of USD 107 billion. In contrast, Central and East Africa have the highest gaps relative to GDP, at 26% and 23% respectively, while North African countries have the lowest gaps at 3% of GDP.
• Private sector contribution to climate finance in Africa is significantly lower than in other global regions, accounting for only 14% (USD 4.2 billion) of total flows. This is compared to 37% in South Asia, 39% in East Asia and Pacific, and 49% in Latin America & Caribbean. Private investment is heavily skewed toward mitigation projects, which receive 81% of private funding.
• Africa maintains a better balance between adaptation and mitigation than other global regions, with mitigation accounting for 49% (USD 14.6 billion) and adaptation for 39% (USD 11.4 billion). Despite this, funding for adaptation and mitigation must increase by at least six and 13 times, respectively, to meet needs.
• There is a stark disparity between clean energy investment and fossil fuel spending. Africa requires approximately USD 133 billion annually in clean energy investment for 2026–2030, yet annual renewable energy investment is only USD 9.4 billion. This is far lower than the USD 29 billion per year invested in fossil fuels (2016–2021) and the USD 37 billion per year in fossil fuel government subsidies (2019/2020).

APA

Climate Policy Initiative (2022). Landscape of Climate Finance in Africa. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/publication/landscape-of-climate-finance-in-africa/

Chicago

Climate Policy Initiative. Landscape of Climate Finance in Africa. 2022. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/publication/landscape-of-climate-finance-in-africa/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Climate Policy Initiative |title=Landscape of Climate Finance in Africa |date=21 September 2022 |url=https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/publication/landscape-of-climate-finance-in-africa/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{climatepolicyinitiative2022landscape, author = {{Climate Policy Initiative}}, title = {{Landscape of Climate Finance in Africa}}, institution = {Climate Policy Initiative}, year = {2022}, month = sep, url = {https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/publication/landscape-of-climate-finance-in-africa/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }