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The report identifies a significant 'take-off' in solar panel imports to Africa, with imports from China rising 60% to 15,032 MW in the 12 months to June 2025. This growth is widespread, with 20 countries setting new import records and 25 countries importing at least 100 MW. The report suggests this surge may be driven by distributed solar, potentially replacing expensive diesel generation and significantly increasing electricity supply in several countries, such as Sierra Leone and Chad.

The report examines the role of intellectual property rights (IPR) in accelerating the adoption and development of green technologies across Africa. It highlights that while patents are often prohibitively expensive for African innovators, non-patent mechanisms like utility models, trademarks, and geographical indications (GIs) offer more accessible pathways for incremental innovation and market growth. The document analyzes the IPR landscapes of Kenya, Ghana, and Nigeria, noting that while these countries are emerging as greentech hubs, their legal frameworks often lack explicit provisions for green technology. It further discusses the influence of global agreements like the Paris Agreement and TRIPS, and regional initiatives such as the AfCFTA, arguing that harmonizing IPR systems and reducing registration costs are critical to unlocking Africa's potential in the global green economy.

This fact sheet defines green industrial policy (GIP) as government strategies to promote sustainable industries and phase out greenhouse gas emitters. It highlights the success of China's electric vehicle industry as a model for GIP but warns that developing countries face significant financing, skills, and technological barriers. The document emphasizes the role of the G20 in shaping global GIP principles, particularly under South Africa's agenda, which focuses on leveraging critical minerals to drive inclusive economic growth and manufacturing in Africa.

Morocco possesses significant reserves of green transition minerals (GTMs), including approximately 72% of global phosphate, positioning it as a strategic partner for the EU and China. While the EU emphasizes regulatory compliance and sustainability standards, China provides rapid industrial scale and technical expertise in refining. The authors argue that Morocco's current bilateral engagements are fragmented and propose a five-step trilateral framework—including a joint task force, dedicated industrial zones, and a sustainability charter—to transform geopolitical competition into coordinated investment and technology transfer.

Africa's freshwater ecosystems host at least 3,281 fish species, most of which are endemic, supporting millions of people through fisheries and providing critical ecosystem services. However, approximately 26% of these species are threatened with extinction due to damming, pollution, over-abstraction of water, invasive species, and climate change. The report highlights the critical role of the African Great Lakes and major river basins, the economic potential of the aquarium and recreational angling trades, and the urgent need for integrated management through initiatives like the Freshwater Challenge and the use of eDNA monitoring.

The document argues that while Africa possesses immense renewable energy potential, over 600 million people lack electricity, and only 2% of global renewable energy investments in the last two decades have gone to the continent. It identifies critical barriers to private sector engagement, including currency mismatch, regulatory instability, and inadequate grid infrastructure. Using Nigeria as a case study, the report highlights the success of off-grid solar solutions compared to the struggling privatised on-grid sector. It recommends institutionalising predictable policies, expanding innovative finance like green bonds and blended finance, and investing in grid-compatible infrastructure and local technical capacity to accelerate the energy transition.

The document examines Germany's engagement with African agrifood systems through the BMEL, BMZ, and GIZ, finding that while funding has grown, it remains primarily aid-driven and insufficient for systemic transformation. It recommends transitioning toward market-oriented partnerships, leveraging the AfCFTA and the CAADP Kampala Declaration to promote value addition and private sector investment.

Nigeria faces a substantial annual climate financing gap of $15.8 billion, with tracked inflows of $1.9 billion remaining low relative to its economy. The document argues for a Country Platform for Climate Action (CPCA) to coordinate government, private sector, and international efforts, citing the Just Energy Transition Partnerships (JETPs) in South Africa, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Senegal as models. While JETPs have mobilized $46.5 billion across four countries, they are criticized for narrow focuses on energy systems and inadequate local engagement. A proposed Nigerian CPCA would expand this scope to include resilience, industrial growth, and social equity, while balancing geopolitical relationships with the EU, US, China, and India to meet a $1.9 trillion energy transition target by 2060.

The report outlines the regulatory complexities of the energy transition toward low-emissions hydrogen, emphasizing the high uncertainty of future demand. It provides specific guidance for electricity and gas regulators on managing infrastructure investments, pricing, and safety risks. The authors argue that regulators must balance government policy goals with their mandate to ensure affordable and safe service, warning against 'stranded assets' if hydrogen investments are based on hype rather than economic reality. Key technical concerns include hydrogen's propensity for pipeline embrittlement, low roundtrip efficiency in power generation, and the necessity of high-integrity emissions accounting to avoid greenwashing.

The report examines the integration of finance within National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) across 59 developing countries. It finds that while most NAPs include dedicated finance sections and rely heavily on international public funding, there is a significant gap in detailed costing and the mobilization of private-sector finance. The authors recommend that countries move toward more investment-oriented NAP documents, implement climate-resilient fiscal planning, and adopt tailored financing strategies—particularly for Least Developed Countries (LDCs)—to bridge the adaptation finance gap.

The report proposes the minerals-energy-food (MEF) complex as an evolution of the water-energy-food (WEF) nexus. It argues that the WEF nexus fails to account for the global trade of commodities, the critical role of minerals in the energy transition, and the systemic power asymmetries between resource-rich low-income countries and wealthy consuming nations. The MEF complex integrates three commodity clusters (minerals, energy, food), three local mediating factors (water, land, labour), and five higher-order global factors (global governance, trade, supply chains, geopolitics, and climate change). Using examples from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Brazil, and Ukraine, the authors demonstrate how these components interact to create cascading risks and unequal exchange. The report concludes with a research and policy agenda focused on data transparency, risk ownership, governance mapping, and inclusive participation.

The report highlights a critical gap in US trade data that obscures the extent of firm-level dependence on Chinese suppliers for battery minerals and components. While China dominates global production—controlling 70% of battery pack assembly and 91% of anode production—current US tracking relies on outdated Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) codes and allows firms to hide import partners. The authors recommend updating trade codes, enhancing intergovernmental data sharing, expanding reporting requirements for electric vehicle tax credits, and leading international efforts for trade code standardization to enable more nuanced policymaking and supply chain diversification.

The Moroccan National Railways Office (ONCF) issued Morocco's first infrastructure Green Bond in 2022, raising 1 billion Moroccan dirhams (approximately £80 million) to refinance the high-speed rail link connecting Tangier to Kenitra. This rail service is powered entirely by wind energy and is expected to reduce CO2 emissions by over 2.5 million tonnes over 30 years. The financing was supported by partners including CDG Capital, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), and FSD Africa.

BCP and Attawfiq Micro-Finance launched Morocco's first Gender Bond, raising USD 25 million to provide microloans and non-financial services to over 17,000 women, addressing systemic barriers to financial inclusion in both urban and rural areas.

The document analyzes the interdependencies between the EU, China, and Africa regarding critical raw materials (CRMs). While the EU seeks to reduce its reliance on China through initiatives like the Critical Raw Materials Act and the Global Gateway, the paper argues that complete decoupling is unfeasible due to China's dominance in midstream processing and the high costs of establishing independent European supply chains. It highlights that African nations, particularly the DRC and Zimbabwe, are increasingly pushing for local value addition and processing rather than mere extraction. The author proposes a trilateral cooperation model, using a hypothetical cobalt project in the DRC, where the EU provides technical training and financing, China provides refining technology and market access, and the DRC ensures resource ownership and local industrial development.

The Natur'ELLES project in Senegal addresses fisheries challenges like overfishing and habitat loss by empowering women through data access, education, and leadership training. The project utilizes tools such as the Sustainable Asset Valuation (SAVi) analysis tool and a Google Earth Engine Mangrove Mapping app to monitor mangrove health and support nature-based infrastructure. Specific initiatives include 'mangrove platforms' for stakeholder dialogue, literacy classes for women, and a feminist leadership program to increase women's participation in natural resource decision-making, particularly in the Sine Saloum and Casamance deltas.

In 2024, global electricity generation reached new record highs for solar, wind, hydro, gas, and coal. Solar was the fastest-growing source, increasing by 474 TWh to reach a 6.9% share of the global mix, with China contributing 53% of this growth. Wind generation also hit a record of 2,494 TWh, though growth slowed due to weather conditions. Hydro rebounded to an all-time high of 4,416 TWh following 2023 droughts, largely driven by China. Nuclear generation grew by 2.5% to 2,768 TWh, but its global market share fell to a 45-year low of 9%. Gas and coal both reached record generation levels in 2024, though their shares of the global electricity mix declined to 22% and 34% respectively, as electricity demand grew faster than their production.

The report highlights solar power as the primary engine of the global energy transition, noting it surpassed 2,000 TWh of generation in 2024 and doubles every three years. While emerging drivers such as data centres, EVs, and heat pumps have structurally increased electricity demand, clean generation is projected to grow fast enough to meet this demand and drive a structural decline in fossil fuels by 2030. Central to this shift is the progress in China and India, where clean power deployment is breaking the historical link between economic growth and fossil fuel expansion, potentially tipping the global balance toward a decline in fossil generation.

The Mediterranean region's renewable power capacity is projected to double from 315 GW in 2023 to 626 GW by 2030, primarily driven by solar and wind. However, this trajectory falls 374 GW short of the TeraMed Initiative's 1 TW goal. To bridge this gap, the region would need to install an additional 54 GW of wind and solar annually beyond current plans, totaling 98 GW per year, which significantly exceeds the historical maximum annual deployment of 45 GW.

The report analyzes the emergence of 'hydrogen readiness'—the declared ability of infrastructure to use hydrogen in the future—within EU law, private finance, and national policies. It argues that the concept is often used as a 'Trojan horse' to justify the continued construction and subsidization of fossil gas assets. The author identifies significant risks, including carbon lock-in, price volatility, and external energy dependencies, and concludes that the term should be abandoned unless assets can use 100% hydrogen from the outset.