TICAD (Tokyo International Conference on African Development) is an international conference on African development, initiated by the Japanese government in 1993 and jointly organized by the United Nations, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the African Union Commission ( Prior to the 8th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD 8) to be held in Tunisia on August 27-28, 2022, a side event on climate change was held online on August 23.
Side Event Overview
Conference Title: “Focusing on Development Challenges and Support Needs to Address Climate Change in Africa”
Date: August 23, 2022 17:00-18:30 JST
Format: Held online
Participants: 172 people
Organized by Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)
Phenomena seen as climate change, such as rising temperatures and sea levels, changing rainfall patterns, and increasing extreme weather events, are having a profound impact on the African continent, particularly on its most vulnerable populations, causing stress on food security, population movements, and water resources.
JICA established a Global Agenda (Climate Change) in June 2021, which sets the promotion of the implementation of the Paris Agreement and co-benefit-based climate change measures as its pillars.
In this side event, a case study was presented on one of the pillars, “co-benefit climate change measures,” which generate multiple benefits by both meeting needs and promoting climate change measures in each development issue.
Specifically, he introduced Kenya’s REDD+ and monitoring to create a mechanism for coexistence between forest conservation and sustainable development, Egypt’s introduction of technology and knowledge related to energy conservation and human resource development, as well as food and nutrition improvement in the arid and semi-arid regions of Africa (ASAL).
Finally, he presented effective approaches and ways to support future efforts by international organizations such as USAID, AfDB, and JICA to help African countries transition to a decarbonized society and build resilience to climate change.
Opening Remarks
Mr. Eiji Iwasaki, Director of Global Environment Department of JICA, introduced that the African region is greatly affected by climate change, and that there are many vulnerable people and high needs for adaptation measures, and also introduced JICA’s ongoing climate change measures in Africa in many fields.
Chihenyo Kangara, USAID Regional Climate Change and Resilience Specialist, Kenya, then spoke about USAID’s work with governments, the private sector, civil society, and other international organizations to implement climate programs in Africa and to encourage African governments to make changes toward climate change. He also stated that USAID is working with governments, the private sector, civil society and other international organizations to implement climate programs in Africa.
Forest Management in Kenya and Energy Conservation Promotion in Egypt
Mr. Alfred Gichu, Undersecretary for Forest Conservation and National REDD+ Coordinator and Focal Point, Ministry of Environment and Forest Conservation, Kenya, announced that Kenya, through JICA’s support, has established a mechanism for coexistence of forest conservation and sustainable development by developing a national reference level for REDD+ (Note 1), establishing a monitoring system, and implementing demonstration projects to achieve the goal of “10% forest cover” set out in the Constitution. Through JICA’s support, Kenya has been working to establish a framework for coexistence between forest conservation and sustainable development by establishing a national reference level for REDD+ (Note 1), establishing a monitoring system, and implementing demonstration projects.
(Note 1) REDD+: REDD+ is a system under which the amount of emission reductions and removals achieved by implementing activities to control deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries where such activities are expected to occur will be recognized as the contribution of the entities implementing the activities. The assessed emission reductions and removals are expected to be utilized for emission credit trading and CSR purposes.
Dr. Ahmed Mohina, Undersecretary of the Egyptian Ministry of Electricity and Renewable Energy (in charge of strategic planning, electricity performance follow-up, and international cooperation), presented the current state of electricity in Egypt and announced that Egypt is working to achieve the national goal of “42% of electricity supply from renewable energy by 2035 and 18% improvement in energy efficiency. Dr. Mohina announced that Egypt is working on the large-scale introduction of renewable energy and the promotion of energy conservation in order to achieve the national target of “42% renewable energy and 18% improvement in energy efficiency by 2035”.
Mr. Yasuhiro Sakamoto (PADECO Co., Ltd.) introduced the “Capacity Development Project for Improving Energy Use Efficiency” that JICA is working on in Egypt. Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources (MOP), Industrial Development Authority (IDA), and Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS). (CAPMAS) to promote energy efficiency and conservation, and announced that they are introducing new technologies and knowledge, developing human resources, and creating institutions in the areas of electricity, fuel, households, industry, and data management.
Adoption of Sustainable Agriculture in the Arid and Semi-Arid Regions of Africa (ASAL)
Dr. Monicah N. Kinuthia, Acting Director of Strategic Program Development, Arid and Semi-Arid Areas (ASAL) Development Division, Ministry of Public Service, Gender, Elderly Affairs and Special Programs, Kenya, explained that pastoralists, who make up 80% of the ASAL region, have been unable to maintain nomadic livelihoods due to prolonged drought. Dr. Kinuthia explained the need to diversify the food and livelihoods of pastoralists and increase their resilience to climate change.
Mr. Fumiaki Murakami, JICA Expert (General Manager, Nippon Koei Co., Ltd.), gave a presentation on the “Agriculture Homework Diary” conducted by the “Improving Food and Nutrition through Enhancing Climate Change Adaptation in Arid and Semi-Arid Regions of Kenya (IFNuS) Project. The project is a homework program in which children create a vegetable garden at school, and then during long vacations, they create a small vegetable garden in their home garden, observe it, and write a diary.
Initiatives by International Organizations Mr. Chihenyo Kangara, USAID Regional Climate Change and Resilience Specialist, Kenya, introduced USAID’s recently released Climate Strategy (2022-2030) and PREPARE (Program for Adaptation & Resilience). He noted that USAID is focusing on the strategies and priorities of African countries and would like to cooperate with them to enhance their preparedness for the climate crisis, including strengthening adaptation measures. Eng. Khaled El-Askari, Chief Energy Officer of the African Development Bank (AfDB) in Egypt, introduced the AfDB’s Strategic Framework, which aims to mainstream climate change measures so that all projects contribute to mitigation or adaptation, and to allocate an equal share of climate finance between mitigation and adaptation measures. He also introduced that the organization is working to mainstream climate change measures so that all projects contribute to either mitigation or adaptation. He also explained that they are cooperating with JICA and the French Development Agency (AFD) to conduct technical assistance studies (e.g., electricity studies for the transportation sector, green hydrogen, phase-out of inefficient appliances, etc.). Mr. Akihiro Miyazaki, Director of JICA’s Climate Change Office, introduced the need for broad and continuous promotion of climate change measures in terms of both mitigation and adaptation, especially mainstreaming climate change measures among various development issues, under the circumstances where the impact of climate change is becoming more serious and is also called “climate crisis”. He pointed out that the co-benefit approach is even more important. He also noted that while Africa has high needs in the field of adaptation, it is also characterized by its vast tropical rainforests that serve as carbon dioxide sinks, and that it is necessary to introduce sustainable climate change measures that take these characteristics into account. Closing Remarks Dr. Ali Abou Sena, Chief Executive Officer of the Egyptian Environment Agency (EEAA), stated that he hopes to further develop cooperation in areas such as education, electricity, and health through a bilateral agreement between Japan and Egypt (signed in 2016). At the same time, he stressed the need to build resilience to the effects of climate change, as climate change has the potential to reverse the achievements of social infrastructure and other development efforts. He also expressed Egypt’s determination to develop a national climate change strategy and to play a leading role in combating climate change in the region, noting that as the host country of COP27, it is eager to ensure the participation of as many people as possible, including civil society activists working in the environmental field, and to secure funding for sectors that are particularly vulnerable to climate change. He stated that he is eager to ensure the participation of as many people as possible, including civil society activists working in the environmental field.
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