Background information on the 9^th Conference on climate change and development in Africa

UNHCR will host a pre-event on climate change and displacement on the margins of the Climate Change and Development in Africa Conference (CCDA-IX).

The Climate Change and Development in Africa Conference (CCDA) series of conferences are a flagship dialogue space of the ClimDev-Africa initiative, which is composed of a partnership of the Africa Union Commission (AUC), African Development Bank (AfDB), United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA). The Government of Cabo Verde has generously offered to host the event this year.

The overall objectives of the conference are geared towards launching a continent-wide debate on what a just transition for Africa should look like and how the continent can develop appropriate frameworks to prepare for the just transition.

CCDA-IX is expected to bring together a wide range of stakeholders and interested constituencies, including policymakers, technocrats, parliamentarians, the African Group of Negotiators on climate change; researchers, academia, climate think-tanks, civil societies, youth, women groups, and indigenous groups. Other notable stakeholders who will grace the conference include development partners, local government representatives, international organizations, and members of the private sector.

Purpose and scope of the event

With increasing global attention on averting, minimising, and addressing the impact of climate change among States in Africa and other regions, in accordance with the UN Secretary General’s Six Positive Climate-Positive Actions to Rebuild Economies Better from the COVID-19 Pandemic^[1] ,  UNHCR’s Strategic Framework for Climate Action^[2] and the Global Compact on Refugees (GCR), and as preparations for the 26^th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP26) advance, this event takes place at a timely moment. It is also noteworthy, that the GCR which was adopted by the UN General Assembly on 17 December 2018, effectively acknowledges and addresses the reality of increasing displacement in the context of disasters, environmental degradation, and climate change, and provides a basis for measures to tackle the many challenges arising in this area.

The event intends to take stock of recent key developments in our understanding of how the adverse effects of climate change impact people’s lives in Africa and which legal and normative frameworks may be applicable to protect people who are displaced across borders in this context, and to produce key messages on this topic.

This event aims to address the following purposes:

1. Take stock of climate actions undertaken by African states and civil society actors in the region as they relate to addressing root causes and main challenges,
2. Identify priorities and opportunities for partnerships and development of synergies on this topic in the region,
3. How can prevention of root causes and response to climate and conflict induced cyclical displacement in Africa leveraging: a “whole of Government and Society approach” supported by the AU, Regional Economic Communities (RECSs) and UN humanitarian and development the   private sector be enhanced,
4. Raise awareness on the relevance of African regional frameworks for the protection of people displaced in the context of climate change and disasters and on advancing the interpretation and application of the 2009 AU Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa (Kampala Convention), 1969 OAU Convention on Specific Aspect of Refugee Problems in Africa, i.e. how the effects of climate change, environmental degradation and disasters impact public order, and how Africa’s human rights framework can be used to protect people displaced in the context of disasters and climate change.
5. Give voice to displaced and host communities affected by the impacts of climate change in Africa

[1] Six Climate-Positive Actions to help rebuild economies from COVID-19 Pandemic | United Nations

[2] 604a26d84.pdf (unhcr.org)