[ad_1]
The President of the African Development Bank, Akinwumi A. Adesina, has been announced as the champion of the Great Green Wall of Africa (GGW) initiative.
The appointment was made at a forum held on the sidelines of the 2020 One Planet Summit1 to mobilize support for the ambitious project to plant an 8,000 km strip of trees and other vegetation in the Sahara and Sahel regions of Africa.
The green wall will act as a barrier against desertification and aims to create more than 10 million green jobs in the region.
“I would also like to acknowledge the commitment of Dr. Adesina, President of the African Development Bank, who has agreed to assume the role of champion of resource mobilization and help raise, by 2030, all the funds necessary for the realization of the Great Green Wall, ”French President Emmanuel Macron told participants.
In the role of champion, Adesina will lead the mobilization of political and financial support for the initiative.
“The Great Green Wall Initiative is the first step on the path to nature-based solutions, as well as solutions based on the vitality of African ecological solutions,” Macron said.
“France is very committed to this region from the point of view of safety and sustainability. We need to strengthen the initiative for the 11 countries ”.
During the forum, Adesina announced that the Bank would mobilize up to $ 6.5 billion over the next five years for the Great Green Wall Initiative, joining multilateral development institutions, governments and development partners that have pledged more than $ 14 billion. .
The World Bank, for example, pledged more than $ 5 billion in funding to advance land degradation and restoration issues and address challenges around Lake Chad.
Adesina praised the initiative. “The Great Green Wall is part of Africa’s environmental defense system, a shield against the ravages of desertification and degradation,” he said.
“The future of the African Sahel region depends on the Great Green Wall. Without the Great Green Wall, in the face of climate change and desertification, the Sahel could disappear ”.
The Bank will extend resources through a variety of mechanisms, partnerships and operations, and will draw on internal and external funding sources, including the Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa (SEFA) and the Green Climate Fund (GCF), among others. .
Adesina noted that ongoing Bank initiatives, such as Desert to Power, a program to build the world’s largest solar zone in the Sahel, will enhance and complement the Great Green Wall.
“This will provide electricity to 250 million people and help protect the Great Green Wall. If there is no access to energy, the Great Green Wall will be nothing more than trees waiting to be turned into coal ”.
The Bank has committed to mobilizing $ 25 billion for climate finance by 2025.
The One Planet Summit 2021 is hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron and His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales.
Held annually, the Summit brings together political leaders, private sector decision makers, foundations, NGOs and citizens to identify and accelerate funding for climate, biodiversity and ocean solutions and mobilize all stakeholders in public life and the economic world in collaborative efforts.
Other champions of the Great Green Wall include musicians Baaba Maal and Ricky Kej and environmental activist Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim.
