The Global Center on Adaptation (GCA) has established a regional office focused on adaptation issues and projects across Africa. The regional office is hosted by the African Development Bank (AfDB) at its headquarters in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.

GCA Africa will partner with organizations across the continent to scale and accelerate climate adaptation initiatives, focusing on programmes and actions, knowledge acceleration, and capacity building and agenda setting. GCA Africa aims to improve the food security of one billion Sub-Saharan Africans by 2030 through a programme focused on enhancing rural well-being and food security. It will also focus on projects to build youth leadership, leverage nature for more resilient infrastructure, and support communities through water for urban growth and resilience.

AfDB President Akinwumi Adesina said the opening of the regional GCA office in Africa marks a major milestone in the AfDB’s push to build climate resilience across the continent. He highlighted the AfDB’s commitment to doubling its financing for climate to USD 25 billion by 2025, with over 50% devoted to adaptation, and said the Bank “will partner with the GCA to mobilize more resources for climate adaptation in Africa.” 

Patrick Verkooijen, CEO of the GCA, highlighted GCA Africa’s role in “responding to the growing demand for strengthening resilience to the impacts of our changing climate” by working with partners to “ensure the most effective adaptation measures are shared and scaled across the continent.”

GCA Africa is a regional office of the Global Center on Adaptation, which works as a solutions broker to accelerate action and support for adaptation. Hosted by the Netherlands, GCA engages in high-level policy activities, research, communications, and technical assistance to government and the private sector. GCA is the lead partner institution for the Climate Adaptation Summit to be hosted by the Netherlands in January 2021, the first major gathering of international leaders wholly dedicated to adaptation. [OCHA Press Release on Launch Event] [OCHA Press Release on GCA Africa] [AfDB Press Release] 

By Gabriel Gordon-Harper, Thematic Expert on Climate Change and Sustainable Energy