AGN Chair demands predictable finance as $7.6 million Urban Resilience Facility launches at COP31

The African Group of Negotiators on Climate Change (AGN) has positioned urban adaptation at the center of the global climate agenda, calling for direct, predictable finance to protect the continent's most vulnerable city dwellers.

Speaking at a high-level special event, AGN Chair, Nana Dr. Antwi-Boasiako Amoah formally welcomed the launch of the Building Climate Resilience with Africa's Urban Poor (BCRUP) Regional Readiness Project, supported by an initial $7.6 million readiness facility from the Green Climate Fund (GCF).

The project marks a vital operational link between high-level diplomatic commitments and grassroots urban survival across ten pioneer African nations.

"Across Africa, the urgency of climate action is increasingly measured by the safety and resilience of our cities and communities," declared Dr. Amoah during his keynote address to ministers, international delegates, and municipal leaders.

"As Chairperson of the African Group of Negotiators on Climate Change, I see the BCRUP Regional Readiness Project as an important opportunity to strengthen the link between our collective climate commitments within the adaptation work streams particularly, the Global Goal on Adaptation, National Adaptation Plan, and Loss and Damage, as well as the locally led action needed to achieve meaningful adaptation outcomes."

African urban centers face escalating compound hazards. Flooding, extreme heat waves, water stress, and environmental degradation severely threaten economic productivity and community livelihoods. Residents of informal settlements and underserved municipal neighborhoods endure the highest exposure to these shocks while possessing the fewest resources to recover.

Dr. Amoah emphasized that international climate negotiations must bridge the divide between policy frameworks negotiated at global summits and the daily reality of vulnerable residents in secondary cities, municipalities, and informal settlements.

"Africa's climate vulnerability is increasingly evident in its cities, municipalities, and smaller towns – and this what BCRUP stand for and why we align with the programme as it offers practical connection between negotiations and implementation at the grassroot," Dr. Amoah noted. "From the perspective of climate negotiations, the challenge is not only to secure commitments for climate finance but also to ensure that those commitments translate into locally owned and implementable programs."

The $10 billion operational plan and the GCF facility

The newly launched $7.6 million GCF readiness facility represents an initial catalytic step within a broader, long-term regional strategy. In December 2023, during COP28 in Expo City Dubai, BCRUP unveiled its comprehensive 10-Year Implementation Plan (2024–2034). That roadmap outlines an estimated $10 billion investment requirement—approximately $500 million per country—to scale climate-resilient solutions across 20 African pilot countries.

To date, BCRUP has already conducted climate risk assessments and hotspot mapping in more than 60 vulnerable urban areas. The newly approved GCF readiness funding will build upon these foundations to strengthen national coordination mechanisms, boost local government planning capacity, and prepare investment-ready project pipelines.

"The approval of the US$7.6 million Green Climate Fund facility for BCRUP is a welcome milestone," Dr. Amoah stated. "It offers an opportunity to strengthen national coordination mechanisms, build the capacity of local authorities, improve climate-risk and infrastructure data, develop Green Climate-Resilient Urban Spatial Plans and Community Adaptation Plans, and prepare an investment-grade program proposal."

The project relies on a multi-institutional governance framework. Championed by the Government of Kenya and hosted with the support of the Republic of Türkiye's COP31 Presidency, the initiative brings together technical and institutional coordination from UN-Habitat and United Cities and Local Governments of Africa (UCLG Africa), alongside national designated authorities, municipal leaders, and civil society organizations.

Road to COP32: From commitments to bankable pipelines

As COP31 deliberations continue, the AGN Chair stressed that the ultimate test of any readiness facility is its ability to unlock predictable finance at scale and deliver tangible safety improvements for vulnerable urban dwellers.

"Urban resilience must be recognised as a central element of Africa's adaptation and climate finance agenda," Dr. Amoah urged delegates. "Finance must reach the local level, and investments must be designed to meet the needs of the people most exposed to climate impacts. Africa must move from commitments to bankable projects and from bankable projects to measurable improvements in the resilience of our communities, but all the success depends on provision of the means of implementation – Financing to scale and in a predictable manner."

Looking ahead, Dr. Amoah signaled that African negotiators intend to maintain momentum through the continent's next major climate milestone.

"Come COP32, in Addis Ababa, we look forward to having a greater conversation aimed at scaling the programme in more Countries across African Cities," Dr. Amoah concluded.