The Global Center on Adaptation (GCA) and the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD) signed a landmark memorandum of understanding (MoU) to collaborate on accelerating climate change adaptation efforts across Africa. Building on the AUC-GCA-AfDB Africa-led, Africa-owned Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program (AAAP), the partnership will support African member states to respond to the impact of the climate crisis.
 
The MoU establishes a framework for joint initiatives in such critical areas as access to climate adaptation finance, technical and institutional capacity building, climate-smart agriculture, sustainable land and water management, and disaster risk management inclusive the African Forest Landscape Restoration Initiative. GCA and AUDA-NEPAD will also collaborate hand-in-hand to ensure full delivery on the $25 billion ambition of the AAAP by 2025 and to build the ground for even more ambitious follow-through beyond 2025.
 
Speaking at the signing ceremony at the GCA regional office in Rotterdam, GCA CEO Professor Patrick V. Verkooijen said: “We are delighted to formalize our collaboration with AUDA-NEPAD through this MoU. Together, we will work towards a climate-resilient Africa by leveraging our combined expertise and resources to support innovative climate adaptation actions on the ground. AAAP is the world’s largest climate adaptation program and the full delivery on the $25 billion ambition it by 2025 is crucial to keeping Africa safe from the escalating impacts of the climate crisis. This partnership is a significant step in our mission to accelerate climate adaptation solutions for Africa.”
 
Ms. Nardos Bekele-Thomas, CEO of AUDA-NEPAD said: “This MoU with the Global Center on Adaptation marks a pivotal moment in our efforts to build a resilient Africa. We are going to galvanize and double down on progress to fully deliver the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program, as well as to take it to the next stages with the full engagement of Africa. By pooling our strengths, we will enhance the capacity of African countries to adapt to climate change, ensuring sustainable development and improved livelihoods for all. We look forward to a fruitful collaboration that will drive impactful adaptation initiatives across the continent.”

Key areas of cooperation outlined in the MoU include:

• Access to Climate Adaptation Finance: enhancing access to international climate finance for adaptation projects in Africa.
• Climate adaptation and training: providing capacity-building initiatives to strengthen adaptation planning and implementation at the local level.
• Institutional Support and collaboration: supporting the programmatic activities of the AUDA-NEPAD Centre on Climate Resilience and Adaptation.
• Climate-Smart Agriculture: promoting climate-smart technologies to improve agricultural productivity and food security.
• Sustainable Land and Water Management: scaling up nature-based practices to manage land degradation and drought.
• Building Resilience and Addressing Fragility and Food Insecurity in Rural Settings: mainstreaming climate adaptation jobs in youth-led enterprises with innovative climate adaptation and resilience solutions; and supporting access to digital advisory services and scalable investments for improved and resilient livelihoods linked to the energy-water-food nexus in rural areas.
• Support African Member States on Disaster Risk Management: increasing integration of disaster risk reduction in regional and national sustainable development frameworks and testing risk-informed preparedness plans.
• Support for African Forest Landscape Restoration Initiative: providing technical capacity to accelerate agroforestry investments to restore degraded landscapes and build resilient communities.
• Infrastructure Resilience: enhancing the resilience of infrastructure projects against climate impacts through capacity building and the identification of priority adaptation projects.

GCA and AUDA-NEPAD will also jointly organize events and advocacy initiatives to promote climate adaptation. This includes participation in such continental and global climate forums as the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Africa Climate Weeks and the GCA Annual Climate Adaptation Summit.