Climate change: failure to invest in youth will harm Africa, says AfDB president
African Development Bank President Akinwumi Adesina said failure to invest in youth would harm the African continent.
He said this while announcing a new billion-dollar facility to accelerate climate finance for African start-ups during a high-level intergenerational dialogue on the theme "Africa, the engine of climate solutions". Climate Adaptation and Jobs”, organized at the Wangari Maathai Institute for Peace and Employment. Environment, Nairobi, Kenya.
“African youth are the present. It is their views and perspectives that will change the continent,” Adesina said. “Failing to invest in youth will hurt Africa, failure is not an option.”
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In announcing the additional $1 billion in funding, Adesina said young Africans do not want “small things handed out to them.” We have no choice but to invest in our young people. »
The additional financing, according to Adesina, will boost YouthAdapt, a joint initiative between the Bank and the Global Center on Adaptation.
The group is currently inviting young entrepreneurs and micro, small and medium enterprises from Africa to submit innovative solutions and business ideas that can boost adaptation and resilience to climate change across the continent.
The institute, funded by the African Development Bank, was officially inaugurated in 2022.
Over the past two years, YouthAdapt has provided over $1.5 million to 33 young entrepreneurs in 19 African countries. Some have increased their profits by 200%.
In his speech, former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon told young people that as global citizens, they should not be held back by national borders.
He urged them to hold their leaders accountable for the promises they make. “Challenge your leaders today. Use your voting power to ensure climate adaptation and finance are a priority. »
Also speaking at the event, Kenyan Cabinet Secretary for Youth, Arts and Sports, Ababu Namwamba, highlighted some of the initiatives launched by the Kenyan government to drive climate adaptation.
"We are recruiting a Green Army of one million young people as climate action warriors to support President William Ruto's ambitious plan to plant 15 billion trees in 10 years."
This, he said, would increase the country's forest cover by 12% to 30%.
He noted that Kenya was the first country to ratify the Sports for Climate Action Initiative under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
As part of this initiative, sports organizations will be able to pursue climate action in a coherent and united manner through the dissemination of good practices, lessons learned and collaboration.
Patrick Verkooijen, CEO of the Global Center for Adaptation (GCA), said the choice facing Africa was a tough one. “Adapt or die.”
Nevertheless, he said the need for adaptation provides opportunities. “We know that if we provide you with the right tools, the right funding and give a voice to those who don’t have one, you will be unstoppable.”
At the event, Adesina was joined by the Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of the Graça Machel Trust and the African Child Policy Forum, Graça Machel; the Norwegian Minister for International Development, Anne Beathe Tvinnereim; and Barbados Foreign Minister Kerrie Simmonds, among other dignitaries.
The event also included the presentation of the Youth4Adaptation communiqué, which urges world leaders to make space for young people in decision-making on adaptation and climate action. The communiqué, reflecting the climate adaptation aspirations of young people in 135 countries around the world, also calls for an increase in adaptation financing with the aim of doubling it by 2025.
The Wangari Maathai Institute is named after the famous environmentalist and Nobel Prize winner, the late Professor Wangari Maathai. She founded the Green Belt Movement and pursued a community-based approach to environmental conservation – working with young people, and particularly women, to plant trees.
Participants at the event also expressed admiration for Professor Maathai's strong legacy in environmental conservation and social justice.
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African Development Bank President Akinwumi Adesina said failure to invest in youth would harm the African continent.
He said this while announcing a new billion-dollar facility to accelerate climate finance for African start-ups during a high-level intergenerational dialogue on the theme "Africa, the engine of climate solutions". Climate Adaptation and Jobs”, organized at the Wangari Maathai Institute for Peace and Employment. Environment, Nairobi, Kenya.
“African youth are the present. It is their views and perspectives that will change the continent,” Adesina said. “Failing to invest in youth will hurt Africa, failure is not an option.”
Similar Items
In announcing the additional $1 billion in funding, Adesina said young Africans do not want “small things handed out to them.” We have no choice but to invest in our young people. »
The additional financing, according to Adesina, will boost YouthAdapt, a joint initiative between the Bank and the Global Center on Adaptation.
The group is currently inviting young entrepreneurs and micro, small and medium enterprises from Africa to submit innovative solutions and business ideas that can boost adaptation and resilience to climate change across the continent.
The institute, funded by the African Development Bank, was officially inaugurated in 2022.
Over the past two years, YouthAdapt has provided over $1.5 million to 33 young entrepreneurs in 19 African countries. Some have increased their profits by 200%.
In his speech, former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon told young people that as global citizens, they should not be held back by national borders.
He urged them to hold their leaders accountable for the promises they make. “Challenge your leaders today. Use your voting power to ensure climate adaptation and finance are a priority. »
Also speaking at the event, Kenyan Cabinet Secretary for Youth, Arts and Sports, Ababu Namwamba, highlighted some of the initiatives launched by the Kenyan government to drive climate adaptation.
"We are recruiting a Green Army of one million young people as climate action warriors to support President William Ruto's ambitious plan to plant 15 billion trees in 10 years."
This, he said, would increase the country's forest cover by 12% to 30%.
He noted that Kenya was the first country to ratify the Sports for Climate Action Initiative under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
As part of this initiative, sports organizations will be able to pursue climate action in a coherent and united manner through the dissemination of good practices, lessons learned and collaboration.
Patrick Verkooijen, CEO of the Global Center for Adaptation (GCA), said the choice facing Africa was a tough one. “Adapt or die.”
Nevertheless, he said the need for adaptation provides opportunities. “We know that if we provide you with the right tools, the right funding and give a voice to those who don’t have one, you will be unstoppable.”
At the event, Adesina was joined by the Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of the Graça Machel Trust and the African Child Policy Forum, Graça Machel; the Norwegian Minister for International Development, Anne Beathe Tvinnereim; and Barbados Foreign Minister Kerrie Simmonds, among other dignitaries.
The event also included the presentation of the Youth4Adaptation communiqué, which urges world leaders to make space for young people in decision-making on adaptation and climate action. The communiqué, reflecting the climate adaptation aspirations of young people in 135 countries around the world, also calls for an increase in adaptation financing with the aim of doubling it by 2025.
The Wangari Maathai Institute is named after the famous environmentalist and Nobel Prize winner, the late Professor Wangari Maathai. She founded the Green Belt Movement and pursued a community-based approach to environmental conservation – working with young people, and particularly women, to plant trees.
Participants at the event also expressed admiration for Professor Maathai's strong legacy in environmental conservation and social justice.
YOU MUST NOT MISS THESE HEADLINES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE
19 people kidnapped, 30 killed in Abuja landslide
Unknown gunmen suspected to be bandits on Thursday kidnapped nineteen people in the Bwari regional council of the federal government...
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