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The report analyzes the security landscape of West Africa, identifying a complex interplay of weak governance, economic inequality, and emerging threats like violent extremism and transnational crime. It highlights how these factors undermine regional stability and development, particularly in the Sahel. While Ghana is relatively stable, it faces risks from porous borders and internal community tensions. The document recommends pursuing economic integration via the AfCFTA, addressing youth unemployment, and strengthening regional security alliances to combat terrorism and trafficking.

The report argues that community lands, managed by Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs), are critical for climate mitigation due to their ability to sequester carbon and maintain biodiversity. Despite managing approximately half of the world's land, only 10% is legally recognized. The document provides evidence that secure land tenure leads to lower deforestation rates compared to state-managed lands and is a cost-effective mitigation strategy. However, these lands face increasing threats from illegal mining, drug trafficking, and land grabbing, while land defenders face rising violence. The report concludes that international climate finance significantly underserves IPLCs and calls for governments to prioritize legal land titling and the protection of environmental defenders.

The document argues that community lands, which cover approximately half of the world's land, are critical for carbon sequestration and biodiversity. It highlights that secure land tenure for IPLCs leads to lower deforestation rates and more effective climate mitigation than state-managed areas, often at a lower cost. However, the report notes that most community land lacks legal recognition, IPLCs receive less than 1% of official development assistance for climate change, and land defenders face increasing violence. It recommends securing land rights, improving law enforcement, and directing international climate funds toward IPLC-led management.

The Independent Evaluation Unit (IEU) found that the SAP Pilot Scheme has not significantly accelerated project approvals or simplified requirements for proponents. While the SAP has increased access for African States and Least Developed Countries (LDCs), it has failed to attract Small Island Developing States (SIDS) or the private sector. The median time from concept note submission to Board approval for SAP projects is 365 days, only 8% shorter than comparable regular projects. The IEU recommends developing a formal SAP strategy, simplifying review criteria, and delegating approval authority to the Executive Director.

The project aims to reduce coastal flooding risks in Egypt's North Coast and Nile Delta through the installation of 69 km of sand dune dikes and the development of an integrated coastal zone management plan. Co-financed by the Green Climate Fund (USD 31.4 million) and the Egyptian Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation (USD 73.8 million), the initiative targets direct benefits for 768,164 people. Implementation involves multiple Egyptian ministries and the UNDP as the Accredited Entity, while the Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency serves as the National Designated Authority.

The WACA program aims to strengthen coastal resilience in Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Mauritania, São Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, and Togo by mainstreaming climate risks into national policies and investing in transport, urban, and natural resource sectors. Supported by a USD 222 million package approved by the World Bank in 2018, the initiative utilizes a 'WACA Marketplace' to match investment demand with partner financing. As of June 2021, 17% of committed funds were disbursed, with specific outcomes in Benin including the securing of 3,500 households from erosion and flooding. The document highlights that the success of such regional instruments depends on strong regional cooperation, political stability, a pipeline of bankable projects, and currency stability.

The African Risk Capacity (ARC) operates as a mutual insurance company and agency to help African Union members manage climate shocks through weather-index insurance. Since 2014, ARC Ltd has provided USD 720 million in coverage and paid USD 65 million in claims, primarily targeting the agriculture sector. Participation requires the use of Africa RiskView (ARV) software to define payout thresholds based on rainfall deviation. The program's viability depends on robust subnational climate data, government technical expertise in sovereign insurance, and high-level political awareness.

TCX addresses currency and interest risk in emerging and frontier markets by providing long-term fixed- and inflation-linked cross-currency and interest rate swaps. Since 2013, it has de-risked nearly USD 8.4 billion of external lending across 70 currencies. In 2020, Sub-Saharan Africa was the second most active region, representing 19% of de-risked finance (USD 187 million) across 18 countries. The model relies on high-credit-rated counterparties, such as development finance institutions, to manage credit risk and connect solutions to end-clients. While 70% of 2020 supported financing targeted microfinance and SMEs, infrastructure and renewable energy projects accounted for approximately 6%.

The ACT Fund is a mid-market greenfield infrastructure fund designed to overcome investment barriers in West Africa by combining technical assistance, equity, and subordinated debt. It utilizes a 'blended currency mechanism' to reduce financing friction during early project stages and provides structured exit solutions for international equity by refinancing projects with local-currency senior debt once they are operational. The fund targets an initial capitalization of USD 150 million for equity and USD 100 million for subordinated debt, with a primary focus on renewable energy before expanding into urban mobility, water, and waste systems.

The document analyzes the multidimensional relationship between China and West Africa, highlighting significant asymmetries in trade and foreign direct investment. It identifies health cooperation, economic recovery, regional integration, and debt restructuring as primary priorities for the FOCAC 8 summit. The author argues that West African nations should move beyond bilateral opportunism toward a strategic regional approach led by ECOWAS, incorporating non-state actors and civil society to address concerns over transparency, debt sustainability, and environmental impacts.

The paper surveys 29 long-term climate strategies (LTSs) submitted to the UNFCCC, representing 42 countries and 28% of global emissions. It finds a growing trend toward net-zero targets, an increasing focus on the fundamental economic and societal shifts required for transition, and a reliance on both natural and technological carbon removals. The analysis highlights that while most strategies include midcentury goals and modeling, the level of detail regarding adaptation and just transition varies, and some parties acknowledge gaps between their most ambitious scenarios and their final targets.

SEforALL reports on its leadership in organizing Ministerial Thematic Forums to secure Energy Compacts, its advocacy for eradicating energy poverty within the G20, and its technical support for national energy transitions in countries such as Nigeria and Rwanda. The organization also highlights the launch of practitioner tools for mini-grid emissions and sustainable cooling, alongside diplomatic engagements with the UAE and the US to accelerate the global energy transition toward SDG7.

The report examines the political shift in the DRC following President Felix Tshisekedi's creation of the 'sacred union' coalition, which granted him a parliamentary majority. While this shift provides an opportunity for electoral reform and improved security in the east, the document highlights significant tensions over the content of these reforms, the independence of the electoral commission (CENI), and whether a proposed population census is a genuine development need or a strategy to delay the 2023 elections.

The report uses surveys and workshops with stakeholders in Dakar to assess how climate change risks are perceived and which adaptation strategies are most acceptable. It finds that while risks are seen as immediate, climate change is a low political priority compared to public services and health. Stakeholders prefer nature-based solutions and risk governance over hard infrastructure, though administrative and financial constraints are seen as major barriers to implementation.

The report highlights the critical role of youth-led organisations, particularly the YoNeLCR, in fostering resilience and peacebuilding in communities affected by the Boko Haram insurgency in Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria. It finds that the COVID-19 pandemic significantly hindered these efforts by limiting face-to-face community interaction and reducing donor funding, with some programme implementation dropping to less than 20% of usual levels. The document argues against the narrative of youth as merely victims or perpetrators, showcasing their roles as peace messengers, ICT innovators, and CSO leaders. It recommends that the Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC) and African Union (AU) create formal plans to integrate youth-led organisations into regional stabilisation strategies.

The report details SEforALL's efforts over a 100-day period to accelerate the clean energy transition. Key activities include the launch of the 'Be Bold' campaign, coordination of the UN High-level Dialogue on Energy and its Energy Compacts, and supporting the COP26 Energy Transition Council. The organization also highlights research on sustainable cooling, a youth summit, and specific technical assistance for energy access in Nigeria and Sierra Leone, alongside a new healthcare electrification partnership with USAID and Power Africa.

The document identifies decentralised renewable energy (DRE) as the most cost-effective option for over half of the electricity connections needed by 2030 in emerging markets. To scale this, it proposes three 'building blocks': increasing public investment to leverage private capital, establishing stable political and regulatory frameworks to mitigate investment risks, and creating an enabling environment through capacity building and innovation. The author highlights a partnership with AISER Benin as an example of concrete market development activity.

The project in Malenville, Benin, involves a 450 kWp roof-mounted photovoltaic solar power plant integrated with a Cegasa High Energy Storage solution. The system utilizes lithium LFP batteries with a storage capacity of 484 kWh (672 Vdc) to ensure a reliable power supply for the Juxtaposed Control Stations at the Benin-Niger border post, addressing the challenges of an underdeveloped local grid.

The document analyzes how gender norms, poverty, and social structures exacerbate the vulnerabilities of women and girls to heat stress and limit their access to cooling services. It highlights specific risks in healthcare, domestic labor, and agriculture, while calling for sex-disaggregated data and gender-transformative policies to achieve universal sustainable cooling.

The document identifies off-grid renewable energy, batteries, and ICT as transformative technologies capable of increasing agricultural productivity and sustainability. It focuses on solar-powered irrigation, noting that while falling costs of solar PV and lithium-ion batteries make these systems more accessible, high upfront costs remain a barrier. The brief warns of risks such as groundwater over-extraction and price depression due to increased yields, and provides eight policy recommendations for governments and financial institutions to ensure an inclusive and sustainable transition.