President of Ghana, Nana Akufo-Addo, Ghanaian actress and television personality, Joselyn Dumas, as well as COP24 President, Michał Kurtyka, are scheduled to formally open the Africa Climate Week on Wednesday, March 20, 2019 in Accra.
The curtain-raising ceremony will introduce a series of discussions throughout the course of the day that will feature prominent leaders, seeking to unlock barriers around enhanced national climate ambition, as well as issues relating to carbon pricing and markets.
The event is said to have so far attracted upwards of 1,500 registrations – far surpassing previous attendance figures and hinting at the renewed significance of the Climate Weeks in relation to driving regional action to implement the Paris Agreement.
The Climate Week will attract Ministers, policymakers, and non-Party stakeholders from businesses, community initiatives, financial institutions, and city municipalities across the African continent, disclosed the UN Climate Change Secretariat.
The UN body adds that the Accra event will act as a focal point for actors to showcase groundbreaking solutions to climate change. For example, a Pitch Hub and Knowledge Corner – located in the heart of the Convention Center – will provide a stage for specialists from non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and climate change initiatives to share ideas with attendees.
Meanwhile, the youth will enjoy a strong presence at the Climate Week – leading on several side events to highlight youth-led initiatives and will also convene a climate march to coincide with Wednesday’s high-level segment.
Africa is being severely impacted by climate change. From floods in the Lake Victoria basin to drought in Somalia, to environmental degradation in the Sahel region, climate change is a threat to continued economic growth and to livelihoods of vulnerable populations across the continent, says the UN body. However, while Africa is one of the lowest contributors to global emissions, it is leading the way by mitigating and adapting to climate impacts through climate action initiatives – examples of which will be displayed at the conference centre.
The upcoming Africa Climate Week in Accra is said to be the first “Regional Climate Week” to be hosted in 2019. It will be followed by the Latin America and the Caribbean and Asia-Pacific Climate Weeks. Collectively, these Climate Weeks will serve as critical stepping stones in the lead-up to the UN Secretary-General’s Climate Action Summit in New York in September 2019.
Africa Climate Week is being co-convened by UN Climate Change, UN Environment, the West African Development Bank, UN Development Programme, World Bank Group, African Development Bank Group, and International Renewable Energy Agency, in collaboration with Climate Technology Centre & Network, UN Food and Agriculture, United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, West African Alliance, Adaptation Fund and Climate and Clean Air Coalition. Other participating organizations include UN Global Climate Action, IRENA, UN Global Compact, WBCSD, ICLEI, Climate Resilience Network, CDP, SLOCAT, Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy, UN-Habitat, Nature4Climate, ICC, Global ABC, CIFOR, UCLG Africa, CIAT-CCAFS, ECREEE, and UN Volunteers.
