Stepping Up Action on Building Climate Resilient Agriculture and Food Systems in Africa

This report details the outcomes of an event titled "Stepping Up Action on Building Climate Resilient Agriculture and Food Systems in Africa," held during Africa Climate Week 2019 in Ghana. Facilitated by the African Union Commission, the Global Resilience Partnership, and the FAO, the event aimed to identify priorities for the 2019 UN Secretary-General's Climate Action Summit and COP25. It focuses on scaling up nature-based solutions, improving climate finance for smallholder farmers, and integrating early warning systems to protect African food security.

• Large-scale restoration and nature-based solutions (NbS) are identified as urgent priorities to build climate resilience, safeguard biodiversity, and meet the global need for 49% more food by 2050. These practices, including agroforestry and farmer-led natural regeneration, are most successful when they center on local communities and combine traditional knowledge with scientific data.
• There is a critical need to reform climate finance to ensure it reaches the local level, specifically targeting smallholder farmers, fishers, and pastoralists in Least Developed Countries (LDCs). The report suggests that ideally more than 75% of finances from national governments, international financial institutions, and private sectors should reach these groups.
• The report emphasizes transitioning from reactive disaster management to a proactive approach through Early Warning Early Action (EWEA) and Forecast-based Financing (FbF). These tools are described as essential for protecting livelihoods and avoiding negative coping strategies before disasters reach their peak.
• Agriculture in Africa is heavily impacted by climate change, with the sector absorbing over 26% of total damage and loss from climate extreme events, a figure that rises to over 80% for drought. Consequently, agriculture and land use are priorities in more than 85% of African countries' Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
• The report calls for a systemic shift in the food and agriculture value chain, including the development of resilience-based food standards for nutrition and safety. It advocates for the empowerment of farmers, women, and youth as active agents of change, suggesting that transforming agriculture into an attractive business can provide employment for African youth.
• The African Development Bank announced a USD 20 billion funding package for 2020-2026, with 40% of these funds allocated to climate-related activities.

APA

Global Resilience Partnership (2019). Stepping Up Action on Building Climate Resilient Agriculture and Food Systems in Africa. https://www.globalresiliencepartnership.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/outcomes-from-the-day-message-and-actions-for-unsgs-climate-action-summit.pdf

Chicago

Global Resilience Partnership. Stepping Up Action on Building Climate Resilient Agriculture and Food Systems in Africa. 2019. https://www.globalresiliencepartnership.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/outcomes-from-the-day-message-and-actions-for-unsgs-climate-action-summit.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Global Resilience Partnership |title=Stepping Up Action on Building Climate Resilient Agriculture and Food Systems in Africa |date=18 March 2019 |url=https://www.globalresiliencepartnership.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/outcomes-from-the-day-message-and-actions-for-unsgs-climate-action-summit.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{globalresiliencepartnership2019stepping, author = {{Global Resilience Partnership}}, title = {{Stepping Up Action on Building Climate Resilient Agriculture and Food Systems in Africa}}, institution = {Global Resilience Partnership}, year = {2019}, month = mar, url = {https://www.globalresiliencepartnership.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/outcomes-from-the-day-message-and-actions-for-unsgs-climate-action-summit.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }