Financing: Stakeholders urge African govts on home-grown innovative solutions
By Lucy Ogalue
Stakeholders on the African continent have urged governments to transit into inclusive, low carbon and resource-efficient economies by tapping into home-grown innovative solutions for financing.
A statement issued on the Economic Commission for Africa’s (ECA) website quoted the stakeholders as saying this at the ongoing 42nd meeting of the Committee of Experts of the Conference of Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development (COM2024) in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
The News agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the 2024 annual ECA Conference of Ministers is being hosted by the Government of Zimbabwe.
The theme of the conference is “Financing the transition to inclusive green economies in Africa: Imperatives, opportunities and policy options”.
The meeting is scheduled to hold between February 28 and March 5.
Mthuli Ncube, Zimbabwe’s minister of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion said it was unfortunate that Africa was not leveraging its resources, including land.
According to Ncube, Africa has about 127 million hectares of potentially irritable land of which only about 13 per cent of this land is currently being used for irrigation.
“We have vast water bodies to irrigate our rich soils; all we need is investment in advanced irrigation technology and enough funding to climate-proof agriculture so that we become food-secure.
“Financing the transition to inclusive green economies comes with a cost and we need to finance this transition with the support of the international community.
“And promoting investment in renewable and environmentally friendly sources of energy,” he said.
Also, Rebecca Otengo, outgoing chair of the Conference of Ministers and, Ugandan ambassador to Ethiopia, said countries should strive to implement the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCTA).
Otengo said this would ensure free movement of people, goods and services on the continent.
According to her, countries need additional financing mechanisms to meet this growing demand and boost economic growth.
The Deputy Executive-Secretary at the ECA, Antonio Pedro said that since the last Conference of Ministers, the world had fallen deeper into economic fragility, climate change, conflict, and distrust.
According to Pedro, Africa has sadly not been spared from these global trends.
“We must accelerate the adoption of just and sustainable transitions, which require long-term structural changes and adequate investment.
“African countries have the ability to create their own solutions to solve their problems. This should be a collective focus as in the continued fight to reform global systems.
“We have, therefore, a unique opportunity to actively transform our countries by transitioning into inclusive, low carbon, and resource-efficient economies,” Pedro said.
The ECA deputy executive-secretary highlighted the key transformative areas that could have catalytic and multiplier effects across all the SDGs.
Pedro said there was urgent need to transform our food systems by prioritising the development of regional value chains, de-risking investment and fast-tracking the implementation of the AfCFTA.
He said these measures would help to insulate the continent from global food security shocks.
According to him, Africa needs to enhance energy access and affordability as less than two per cent of global clean energy investments flow to Africa.
Pedro said there was also the need to embrace the transition to affordable renewable energy by making the most of our solar, wind and geothermal resources as well as our green hydrogen potential.
“We must increase digital connectivity and inclusion to bridge the digital divide that prevents our member States from taking full advantage of the digital age and accessing technological solutions that are available elsewhere.
“Education systems must be transformed and to do this, we must undertake comprehensive foresight analysis that will inform the transformation of education systems and curriculums.
“We must create jobs and enhance social protection.
“Governments must pursue integrated, comprehensive industrial policies and private sector development strategies that create jobs for young people and improve the transition from school to work,” he said.
The official said we must also embolden our response and collective action on climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution by implementing the Nairobi Declaration.
He said the declaration acknowledged that climate change was the single greatest challenge facing humanity and the single biggest threat to all life on Earth. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)
===========
Edited by Ese E. Eniola Williams
Published By
Has also recently published
General NewsJune 27, 2024Nigeria requires N348trn to address infrastructure deficit -ICRC D-G
BusinessJune 26, 2024Ways and means securitisation responsible for N24trn debt rise – DMO
SportsJune 26, 2024Paris Olympics: We’re ready to surpass previous achievements – NOC
Defence/SecurityJune 26, 2024Recruitment: Okiro urges harmony between PSC, Police
