COP 31: Can Africa build resilient growth
Can Africa build resilent growth
It is back for the fourteenth time. The main conference on climate change and development in Africa (CCDA-XIV) will take place from September 7 to 9, 2026, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. This conference is being held a few months before COP 31 in Antalya, Turkey, from November 9 to 21, 2026.
A consensus
Organized by the Economic Commission for Africa, this conference has several objectives. According to the event’s concept note, CCDA-XIV aims to foster consensus on integrated pathways between climate and development.
The conference organizers announce their intention to position climate action as a lever for resilient growth, industrial transformation, and food and water security, among other things. This conference in Ethiopia comes two years before COP 32 is hosted in the country.
The stakeholders hope to secure an agreement on a coherent African political agenda. Their ambition: to secure strategic messages aimed at strengthening Africa’s engagement at COP 31 and preparing for COP 32.
“Africa emits only 4% of greenhouse gases”
“Africa emits only 4% of greenhouse gases” Indeed, the stakeholders present on the African continent next September will identify concrete policy recommendations and implementation pathways to accelerate the enforcement of the Paris Agreement. Other continental priorities regarding climate and development are also on the agenda.
“Africa emits only 4% of greenhouse gases,” the note points out. Last June in Bonn, discussions progressed on several fronts, it describes. Technical work on adaptation, transparency, Article 6, and a just transition are among the advances.
However, observers note, long-standing challenges remain. Several points are still pending. Climate finance, implementation support, and loss and damage are among them. Negotiations on the realization of commitments made under the first Global Stocktake (GST1) also remain pending. As usual, this climate and development conference is supported by the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA).
By Houmi Ahamed
