The State of Climate Finance in Africa

The report finds that implementing Africa's NDCs will cost approximately USD 2.8 trillion between 2020 and 2030, with a 'climate finance need' of USD 2.5 trillion after accounting for domestic public commitments. Current annual flows of USD 30 billion cover only about 12% of the required USD 250 billion per year. Mitigation accounts for 66% of needs, heavily skewed toward South Africa's transport sector, while adaptation represents 24%, likely underestimated due to data gaps. The report highlights a significant reliance on public funding (87%) and recommends that the UNFCCC develop standardized guidance and that countries adopt more participatory, bottom-up needs assessments to mobilize private capital.

• The total cost to implement NDCs across Africa from 2020 to 2030 is estimated at USD 2.8 trillion, with national governments committing USD 264 billion (approximately 10%), leaving a 'climate finance need' of USD 2.5 trillion to be met by international and private sources.
• There is a severe gap between current climate finance flows and actual needs; annual flows in 2020 were USD 30 billion, which is only about 12% of the USD 250 billion required annually to meet 2030 goals.
• Mitigation represents the largest share of reported needs at 66% (USD 1,607 billion). When excluding South Africa, the primary sectors for mitigation needs are energy (39%), AFOLU (27%), industry (20%), and transport (10%).
• Adaptation needs are estimated at USD 579 billion (24% of total needs) and are likely underestimated due to a lack of technical expertise and data, particularly regarding the uncertainty of future emissions.
• Climate finance needs as a percentage of GDP vary wildly, with the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Sudan, and Somalia all reporting needs exceeding 80% of their GDP.
• Public actors provide the vast majority of current climate finance in Africa (87%, or USD 20 billion), while private sector engagement remains limited despite significant potential from African pension funds (USD 700 billion in assets) and sovereign wealth funds (USD 16.4 billion).
• African countries use inconsistent methodologies to estimate needs, primarily split between 'goal-based estimation' (top-down) used by 27 countries and 'project-list estimation' (bottom-up) used by 17 countries.
• Significant financial resources are still being directed toward fossil fuels; between 2016 and 2021, public and private financial institutions invested at least USD 130 billion into fossil fuel projects in Africa.

APA

Guzmán, S., Dobrovich, G., Balm, A., & Meattle, C. (2022). The State of Climate Finance in Africa. FSD Africa. https://fsdafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Climate-Finance-Needs-of-African-Countries1.pdf

Chicago

Guzmán, Sandra, Greta Dobrovich, Anna Balm, and Chavi Meattle. The State of Climate Finance in Africa. FSD Africa, 2022. https://fsdafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Climate-Finance-Needs-of-African-Countries1.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Guzmán |first1=Sandra |last2=Dobrovich |first2=Greta |last3=Balm |first3=Anna |last4=Meattle |first4=Chavi |title=The State of Climate Finance in Africa |publisher=FSD Africa |date=June 2022 |url=https://fsdafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Climate-Finance-Needs-of-African-Countries1.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{guzmn2022state, author = {Guzmán, Sandra and Dobrovich, Greta and Balm, Anna and Meattle, Chavi}, title = {{The State of Climate Finance in Africa}}, institution = {FSD Africa}, year = {2022}, month = jun, url = {https://fsdafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Climate-Finance-Needs-of-African-Countries1.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }