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EmailAdapting and building resilience to climate change are critical for Africa. Africa has continued to show leadership in the global climate change arena under the guidance of the Committee of African Heads of State and Government on Climate Change (CAHOSCC). 54 countries in Africa have ratified the Paris Agreement, with the next steps being to implement their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and National Adaptation Plans (NAPs). Despite the strong political will by countries to act on climate change, much work remains to be done – in particular implementation of the NDCs that countries submitted as part of their commitments to reduce emissions. For the implementation phase of the NDCs many countries would require technical and financial support as well as capacity building and technology to enable them to meet their obligations under the Paris Agreement.
In response to this need, and the White House Global Climate Ambition, USAID and the African Union Commission are partnering with two premier African policy research organizations to strengthen national, regional and continental capacity to implement National Determined Contributions (NDCs) and develop National Adaptation Plans (NAPs). Implemented through the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Food Security Policy Research, Capacity, and Influence (PRCI), led by Michigan State University, RFS is engaging the Regional Network of Agricultural Policy Research Institutes (ReNAPRI) and AKADEMIYA2063 to carry out this work. The five-year vision for the work is for up to 25 African countries to have developed, officially approved, and begun to implement policy and investment plans. These plans will be based on the best available evidence, and will drive the adoption of practices throughout agricultural value chains that spur energy efficiency and forestall rapid rises in greenhouse gas emissions while promoting household resilience, food security, and inclusive growth. Doing this requires working intensively at country level while coordinating with Regional Economic Communities (RECs).
During the first year, ReNAPRI and AKADEMIYA2063 will develop a proof of approach to guide activities over the following four years. Working this first year in 2-4 countries in Southern, East, and West Africa, these two organizations will work with local partners to build needed capacities for data and analytics together with technical and inter- ministerial coordination to facilitate implementation of and reporting against Paris Agreement NDCs, and facilitation of implementation of NAPs. Focusing on food systems, water, and natural resources, they will undertake joint stocktaking exercises, mapping of local policy priorities against Paris Agreement mandates, and ex-ante assessment of likely tradeoffs and outcomes of particular courses of action. ReNAPRI and AKADEMIYA2063 will work with national counterparts to develop metrics to monitor NDC benchmarks and will incorporate these into an online platform to track Paris Agreement implementation at country, regional, and continental level. They will also build metrics of household and community resilience into this platform to inform the design of NAPs. Based on their extensive experience in CAADP and development of National Agricultural Investment Plans, our two lead African partners will work with local partners to develop coordination modalities to facilitate incorporation of best evidence into officially approved policy and investment programs for NDCs and NAPs and to monitor and evaluate their implementation.
Working with the African Union Commission, based on the first year experience, ReNAPRI and Akademiya2063 will adapt and roll out their approach in up to 25 additional countries over the next four years of the five-year effort. The result will be a critical mass of countries able to respond to their commitments under the Paris Agreement in a manner that improves household and community level resilience and food security together with robust inclusive growth.
