<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="546" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/BKTZZ6PC3VJHHMHWRPAKI7PIME-820x546.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-427443" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/BKTZZ6PC3VJHHMHWRPAKI7PIME-820x546.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/BKTZZ6PC3VJHHMHWRPAKI7PIME-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/BKTZZ6PC3VJHHMHWRPAKI7PIME-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/BKTZZ6PC3VJHHMHWRPAKI7PIME-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/BKTZZ6PC3VJHHMHWRPAKI7PIME.jpg 919w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">People walk through debris after a powerful storm and heavy rainfall hit Libya, in Derna, Libya, September 12, 2023 in this still image from video obtained from social media. ALI M. BOMHADI/via REUTERS</figcaption></figure>



NEAR DERNA, Libya, Sept 13 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;A desperate search for thousands of people missing after catastrophic flooding in the Libyan city of Derna entered its third day on Wednesday, with thousands already confirmed dead and the toll expected to rise.



The flood was caused by a powerful storm that burst dams nearby, unleashing a torrent of water that has devastated a quarter or more of the Mediterranean city, washing away buildings along with their residents.



Officials in eastern Libya say the death toll so far stands at more than 5,000. A hospital director in the city told Reuters on Monday 1,700 bodies had been counted at his hospital, and that 500 more had been buried in another part of the city.



Some 10,000 people are estimated to be missing. Many are believed to have been swept out to sea.



Reuters journalists who visited Derna on Tuesday saw many bodies laid out on the ground in hospital corridors and people seeking to identify missing relatives as more dead were brought in.



One Derna resident, Mustafa Salem, told Reuters he had so far lost 30 members of his family.



Aid convoys and trucks carrying bulldozers were headed towards the city on Wednesday.



The flood unleashed enormous destruction, flipping and mangling cars and leaving Derna&#8217;s streets covered in rubble, mud and debris.



Satellite photographs of the city from before and after the disaster show that what had been a relatively narrow waterway through the city centre was now several times wider, with all the buildings that had run along it gone.



Extensive damage, with buildings missing, is also clearly visible in other parts of the city where flood waters broke out from the waterway.



Rescue operations are complicated by Libya being politically fractured.



The internationally recognised Government of National Unity (GNU) is based in Tripoli, in the west. Derna is in an eastern area where a parallel administration operates, and where control is wielded by commander Khalifa Haftar&#8217;s Libyan National Army.



Libya&#8217;s Prime Minister Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah, head of the Tripoli-based government, said on Tuesday the floods were an unprecedented catastrophe. Libya&#8217;s Presidential Council head Mohammed al-Menfi has called for national unity.



The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said emergency response teams had been mobilised to help on the ground. Governments including Qatar and Turkey have rushed aid to Libya.



(Writing by Tom Perry and Angus McDowall; Editing by John Stonestreet and Peter Graff)

Aftermath of a powerful storm and heavy rainfall in Derna

Huge death toll from Libyan storm expected to climb

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/GDCQ27RIS5IZVKFIJMM3DQRTKE-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-427324" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/GDCQ27RIS5IZVKFIJMM3DQRTKE-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/GDCQ27RIS5IZVKFIJMM3DQRTKE-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/GDCQ27RIS5IZVKFIJMM3DQRTKE-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/GDCQ27RIS5IZVKFIJMM3DQRTKE-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/GDCQ27RIS5IZVKFIJMM3DQRTKE-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/GDCQ27RIS5IZVKFIJMM3DQRTKE-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">A model of G20 is pictured outside ITC Maurya hotel ahead of the G20 Summit in New Delhi, India, September 8, 2023. REUTERS/Amit Dave</figcaption></figure>



NEW DELHI, Sept 8 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;G20 countries have almost finalised a declaration for the weekend summit of its leaders, host India said on Friday, suggesting that negotiators had made progress in bridging differences in the group over the war in Ukraine.



The streets of the usually bustling capital New Delhi were deserted ahead of the summit with businesses, offices and schools closed as part of security measures to ensure the smooth running of the meeting, the most high-powered to be hosted by the country.



Slums, monkeys and stray dogs have been removed from the streets.



India&#8217;s G20 sherpa, or negotiator, Amitabh Kant said the summit&#8217;s concluding statement, the Leaders&#8217; Declaration, will be a &#8220;voice&#8221; of the global south and developing countries.



&#8220;New Delhi Leaders&#8217; Declaration is almost ready, I would not like to dwell on it,&#8221; Kant told a news conference. &#8220;This declaration will be recommended to the leaders.&#8221;



Negotiators of the Group of 20 major economies have been struggling for days to agree on the language in the document because of differences over the war, hoping to get Moscow and Beijing on board to produce a communique that will also address pressing global problems like debt and climate change.



The weekend summit in New Delhi is expected to be dominated by the West and its allies. Chinese President Xi Jinping is skipping the meeting and sending Premier Li Qiang instead, while Russia&#8217;s Vladimir Putin will also be absent.



U.S. President Joe Biden, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Saudi Arabia&#8217;s Mohammed Bin Salman and Japan&#8217;s Fumio Kishida, among others, will attend.



China said on Friday it is willing to work with all parties and push for a positive outcome at the summit.



Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning made the remarks after a media report said Sunak blamed China for delaying an agreement on various issues, including Ukraine.



Sunak will urge Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to &#8220;call out&#8221; Russia over its invasion and use its clout to help end the war, the Financial Times reported on Thursday.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-showcasing-india">SHOWCASING INDIA</h2>



The hardened stance on the war has prevented agreement on even a single communique at the ministerial meetings during India&#8217;s G20 presidency so far this year, leaving it to the leaders to find a way around, if possible.



Modi&#8217;s government is projecting India&#8217;s presidency of the group and the summit as a showcase for the country&#8217;s fast-growing economy and its rising position in the geo-political pecking order.



New Delhi has been decked up for the gathering with a brand new summit venue, fountains, flowerpots and illumination along major thoroughfares, alongside thousands of armed security personnel standing guard.



More than a hundred Tibetan refugees staged a protest away from the city centre on Friday, demanding that the &#8220;occupation&#8221; of their country by China be discussed during the summit.



U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who is in New Delhi ahead of Biden&#8217;s arrival on Friday, earlier said Washington is willing to work with India to help craft a communique at the end of the summit but it would be a challenge.



&#8220;I know the negotiators are discussing it, and working hard to do so and we stand ready certainly to work with India to try to craft a communique that successfully addresses this concern,&#8221; Yellen told reporters at a briefing.



The most important thing that can be done to support global economic growth is for Russia to end its brutal war in Ukraine, she said.



The IMF has forecast lower growth for most G20 nations this year than in 2022.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-disagreement-on-climate-change">DISAGREEMENT ON CLIMATE CHANGE</h2>



European Council President Charles Michel echoed that view.



It is difficult to predict whether leaders will reach a consensus on a declaration but EU will support efforts made by India for a final communique, Michel earlier told reporters in New Delhi.



Michel said Moscow is violating the UN charter and must stop attacking Ukrainian cities.



Western countries want a strong condemnation of the invasion as a condition for agreeing to a Delhi declaration. India has suggested that the G20, while condemning the suffering caused by Russia&#8217;s invasion, also reflect Moscow and Beijing&#8217;s view that the forum is not the place for geopolitics.



In addition, there is some disagreement on climate change cooperation,&nbsp;Indian government sources&nbsp;added.



The group has been divided on commitments to phasing down fossil-fuel use, increasing renewable energy targets and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.



(Reporting by Nikunj Ohri, Manoj Kumar, Krishn Kaushik and Aftab Ahmed; Writing by YP Rajesh; Editing by Kim Coghill and Raju Gopalakrishnan)

A model of G20 is pictured outside ITC Maurya hotel ahead of the G20 Summit in New Delhi

G20 members ‘almost ready’ with leaders’ declaration, India says

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="568" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/5YVY627WZ5JH3JOAQI52OF2XG4-820x568.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-427309" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/5YVY627WZ5JH3JOAQI52OF2XG4-820x568.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/5YVY627WZ5JH3JOAQI52OF2XG4-300x208.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/5YVY627WZ5JH3JOAQI52OF2XG4-130x90.jpg 130w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/5YVY627WZ5JH3JOAQI52OF2XG4-768x532.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/5YVY627WZ5JH3JOAQI52OF2XG4-1536x1065.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/5YVY627WZ5JH3JOAQI52OF2XG4-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: A man walks past an installation on a skywalk ahead of the G20 Summit in New Delhi, India, September 6, 2023. REUTERS/Francis Mascarenhas/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



NEW DELHI, Sept 8 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Leaders of the Group of 20 major economies began arriving in New Delhi on Friday for their annual gathering as negotiators struggled to bridge differences over the war in Ukraine, seeking to build consensus for a successful summit host India wants.



Slums, monkeys and stray dogs have been removed from the streets of the Indian capital and businesses, offices and schools were closed in the central business and government district as part of security measures to ensure the two-day summit runs smoothly.



But the gathering risks being derailed by deeper and more entrenched divisions over Russia&#8217;s war, hurting progress on issues such as food security, debt distress and cooperation on climate change.



It is also expected to be dominated by the West and its allies. Chinese President Xi Jinping is skipping the meeting and sending Premier Li Qiang instead, while Russia&#8217;s Vladimir Putin will also be absent.



The summit will still be the most high-powered gathering ever in India with U.S. President Joe Biden, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron, Saudi Arabia&#8217;s Mohammed Bin Salman and Japan&#8217;s Fumio Kishida, among others, confirming participation.



UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will urge Prime Minister Narendra Modi to &#8220;call out&#8221; Russia over its invasion and use its clout to help end the war, the Financial Times reported on Thursday.



The hardened stance on the war has prevented agreement on even a single communique at the ministerial meetings during India&#8217;s G20 presidency so far this year, leaving it to the leaders to find a way around, if possible.



U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who is in New Delhi ahead of Biden&#8217;s arrival on Friday, saidWashington is willing to work with India to help craft a communique at the end of the summit but it would be a challenge.



&#8220;So I understand that this is challenging to craft such language, but I know the negotiators are discussing it, and working hard to do so and we stand ready certainly to work with India to try to craft communique that successfully addresses this concern,&#8221; Yellen told reporters at a briefing.



The most important thing that can be done to support global economic growth is for Russia to end its brutal war in Ukraine, she said.



The IMF has forecast lower growth for most G20 nations this year than in 2022.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-language-on-war">LANGUAGE ON WAR</h2>



European Council President Charles Michel echoed that view.



It is difficult to predict whether leaders will reach a consensus on a declaration but EU will support efforts made by India for a final communique, Michel told reporters in New Delhi.



Michel said Moscow is violating the UN charter and must stop attacking Ukrainian cities.



G20 sherpas or negotiators have made progress on most issues but the main point sticking point is the language in the leaders&#8217; declaration on the war, four Indian government sources told Reuters.



There is some disagreement as well on climate change cooperation, they added.



The group has been divided on commitments to phasing down fossil-fuel use, increasing renewable energy targets and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.



Modi&#8217;s government is projecting India&#8217;s presidency of the group and the summit as a showcase for the country&#8217;s fast-growing economy and its rising position in the geo-political pecking order.



New Delhi has been decked up for the gathering with a brand new summit venue, fountains, flowerpots and illumination along major thoroughfares, alongside thousands of armed security personnel standing guard.



(Reporting by Nikunj Ohri, Manoj Kumar, Krishn Kaushik and Aftab Ahmed; Writing by YP Rajesh; Editing by Kim Coghill)

A man walks past an installation on a skywalk ahead of the G20 Summit in New Delhi

G20 members struggle for consensus on Ukraine as India gears up for summit

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/LNBS4BQT2FIORM3FDLUWY2TDHY-1-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-427288" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/LNBS4BQT2FIORM3FDLUWY2TDHY-1-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/LNBS4BQT2FIORM3FDLUWY2TDHY-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/LNBS4BQT2FIORM3FDLUWY2TDHY-1-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/LNBS4BQT2FIORM3FDLUWY2TDHY-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/LNBS4BQT2FIORM3FDLUWY2TDHY-1-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/LNBS4BQT2FIORM3FDLUWY2TDHY-1-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">A man walks past a model of G20 logo outside the finance ministry in New Delhi, India, March 1, 2023. REUTERS/Anushree Fadnavis</figcaption></figure>



NEW DELHI, Sept 7 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;The G20 grouping of nations has agreed to grant permanent membership to the African Union, Bloomberg News reported&nbsp;on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter.



The move would give the African Union, a continental body of 55 member states, the same status as the EU,&nbsp;up from its current designation of &#8220;invited international organization&#8221;,&nbsp;it added.



However, two Indian sources told Reuters that membership for AU would only be formalised next year when Brazil takes over the helm of the group of the world&#8217;s biggest economies from India.



There is no opposition to the move from within the G20, one of the sources said, speaking on condition of anonymity citing government rules.



Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote to the leaders of the G20 nations in June proposing the AU be given full, permanent membership of the bloc at the upcoming summit in the Indian capital.



In an article published across Indian and international newspapers on Thursday, Modi wrote, &#8220;Our presidency has not only seen the largest-ever participation from African countries but has also pushed for the inclusion of the African Union as a permanent member of the G20.&#8221;



The&nbsp;G20&nbsp;currently comprises 19 countries and the European Union.&nbsp;The members represent around 85% of global GDP, over 75% of global trade, and about two-thirds of the world population.



South Africa, which is a G20 member and has supported the admission of the AU, declined immediate comment ahead of the Delhi summit. South African presidential spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said: “We wouldn&#8217;t comment now until the official announcement or post the summit.”



A South African foreign ministry spokesperson welcomed the news report about the G20 agreeing to make the African bloc a member along the lines of the EU. &#8220;The EU is also a member. We (South Africa) lobbied for and supported this move.&#8221;



G20 leaders are expected to announce the decision during the summit, the Bloomberg report said.



Countries like Germany, Brazil,&nbsp;South Africa&nbsp;and Canada have also&nbsp;voiced&nbsp;support for African Union membership.



(Reporting by Akanksha Khushi in Bengaluru, Carien du Plessis in Johannesburg and New Delhi bureau; Editing by Clarence Fernandez and Raju Gopalakrishnan)

LNBS4BQT2FIORM3FDLUWY2TDHY-1

G20 agrees membership for African Union on par with EU -Bloomberg News

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="550" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/VB6OC7S7QVNYLHNKFON5SXNMIE-820x550.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-427268" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/VB6OC7S7QVNYLHNKFON5SXNMIE-820x550.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/VB6OC7S7QVNYLHNKFON5SXNMIE-300x201.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/VB6OC7S7QVNYLHNKFON5SXNMIE-134x90.jpg 134w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/VB6OC7S7QVNYLHNKFON5SXNMIE-768x515.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/VB6OC7S7QVNYLHNKFON5SXNMIE-1536x1029.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/VB6OC7S7QVNYLHNKFON5SXNMIE-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Kenya&#8217;s President William Ruto alights from an Autopax Air Yetu electric car as he arrives for the Africa Climate Summit (ACS) 2023 at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) in Nairobi, Kenya, September 6, 2023. REUTERS/Monicah Mwangi</figcaption></figure>



NAIROBI, Sept 6 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;African leaders on Wednesday proposed new global taxes and reforms to international financial institutions to help fund climate change action in a declaration that will form the basis of their negotiating position at November&#8217;s COP28 summit.



The Nairobi Declaration capped the three-day Africa Climate Summit in Kenya, which was dominated by discussions of how to mobilise financing to adapt to increasingly extreme weather, conserve natural resources and develop renewable energy.



Despite suffering from some of the worst impacts of climate change,&nbsp;Africa&nbsp;only receives about 12% of the nearly $300 billion in annual financing it needs to cope, according to researchers.



While organisers emphasised market-based solutions such as carbon credits in the lead-up to the summit, the final declaration was heaviest on demands that major polluters and global financial institutions commit more resources to help poorer nations and make it easier for them to borrow at affordable rates.



It urged world leaders &#8220;to rally behind the proposal for a global carbon taxation regime including a carbon tax on fossil fuel trade, maritime transport and aviation, that may also be augmented by a global financial transaction tax&#8221;.



It said implementing such measures at a global level would ensure large-scale financing for climate-related investments and insulate the issue of tax raises from geopolitical and domestic political pressures.



About two dozen countries impose taxes on carbon, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), but the idea of a global carbon tax regime has never gained much traction.



On Tuesday, Kenyan President William Ruto cited proposals in the European Union for a financial transaction tax (FTT) as a potential model.



After the European Commission proposed an FTT in 2011, some conservation groups said the money should finance environmental priorities.



The commission&#8217;s proposal never won the unanimous approval required from the European Council to become law, although some member states have enacted their own FTTs.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-international-financial-system">INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL SYSTEM</h2>



African countries will take the proposals in the Nairobi Declaration to a U.N. climate conference later this month and the COP28 summit which begins in the United Arab Emirates in late November.



Joab Bwire Okanda, a senior advisor at the Christian Aid charity, said the call for a global carbon tax was welcome but that &#8220;to make polluters really pay, false solutions like carbon credits that allow polluters a free ride without taking meaningful action need to be consigned to the dustbin&#8221;.



Some activists say the credits, which allow polluters to offset emissions by funding green activities, are a pretext for big polluters to keep emitting carbon dioxide.



Ruto said governments, development banks, private investors and philanthropists committed a combined $23 billion in all to green projects over the three days, including hundreds of millions to a major carbon markets initiative.



But&nbsp;African leaders acknowledged that those kinds of investments only scratch the surface of the continent&#8217;s financial needs and said more systemic changes were needed.



For example,&nbsp;African countries say they are forced to pay borrowing costs that are five to eight times higher than wealthy countries, leading to recurrent debt crises and preventing them from spending more to respond to climate change.



The declaration called on multilateral development banks to increase concessional lending to poorer countries and for the &#8220;better deployment&#8221; of the IMF&#8217;s special drawing rights mechanism.



Other proposals included measures to help indebted countries avoid default such as instruments that can grant 10-year grace periods and extend sovereign debt tenor.



Some analysts said the summit had not focused enough on how to help&nbsp;Africans adapt to extreme weather.



&#8220;Many communities bearing the brunt of increasing floods and droughts, while also at risk of conflict, are disappointed that there wasn’t more emphasis on ensuring that green investments trickle down to them,&#8221; said Nazanine Moshiri, a senior analyst at the International Crisis Group think-tank.



(Additional reporting by Susanna Twidale in London; Writing by Aaron Ross; Editing by Alison Williams and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)

Africa Climate Summit 2023 at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) in Nairobi

African leaders call for new global taxes to fund climate change action

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/NLRQY7CJV5JQRFSM7SK7AAYT2E-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-427237" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/NLRQY7CJV5JQRFSM7SK7AAYT2E-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/NLRQY7CJV5JQRFSM7SK7AAYT2E-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/NLRQY7CJV5JQRFSM7SK7AAYT2E-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/NLRQY7CJV5JQRFSM7SK7AAYT2E-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/NLRQY7CJV5JQRFSM7SK7AAYT2E-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/NLRQY7CJV5JQRFSM7SK7AAYT2E-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: U.A.E. Industry Minister Sultan Al Jaber attends the Bonn Climate Change Conference in Bonn, Germany, June 8, 2023. REUTERS/Jana Rodenbusch/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



NAIROBI, Sept 5 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;The world is losing the race to meet its climate change goals, the president of the upcoming COP28 climate summit said on Tuesday, as African presidents gathered in Kenya to discuss how to fund the continent&#8217;s environmental agenda.



The grim assessment by Sultan Al Jaber, who will preside over the summit in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in late November, came three days before the United Nations publishes its first “global stocktake”, an assessment of how nations are doing in their efforts to tackle climate change.



&#8220;We are not delivering the results that we need in the time that we need them,&#8221; Jaber,&nbsp;who also heads the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, told delegates at the inaugural Africa Climate Summit in Kenya&#8217;s capital, Nairobi.



The summit, which opened on Monday, is focused on mobilising financing for Africa&#8217;s response to climate change.



While Africa is suffering from some of the most severe impacts of climate change, the continent only receives about 12% of the financing it needs to cope, according to researchers.



Hundreds of millions of dollars of investments in sustainable development projects were announced on Monday, and on Tuesday Jaber announced the UAE was pledging $4.5 billion dollars to develop 15 GW of clean power in Africa by 2030.



Africa currently has about 60 GW of installed renewables capacity.



African officials say the investments are welcome but that meeting the continent&#8217;s financing needs will require a transformation of the global climate financing architecture.



Specifically, African states plan to push at the COP28 for the expansion of special drawing rights at the International Monetary Fund that could unlock $500 billion worth of climate finance, which could be leveraged up to five times.



The president of the African Development Bank, Akinwumi Adesina, called for the continent&#8217;s natural wealth, notably its forests which sequester carbon, to be accounted for when calculating its economic output.



&#8220;Africa&#8217;s GDP must therefore be revalued based on its carbon sequestration and biodiversity, which provide global public goods,&#8221; Adesina said in a speech.



&#8220;If this is done, the debt to adjusted GDP ratio of several African countries will lower and they will have greater headroom to borrow more financing to support their development.&#8221;



(Reporting by Duncan Miriri; Writing by Aaron Ross; Editing by Christina Fincher)

FILE PHOTO: Bonn Climate Change Conference in Germany

World losing race to meet climate goals, COP28 president says

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/CJNZZ7G46FJL5NF6CJHNTYKANU-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-427222" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/CJNZZ7G46FJL5NF6CJHNTYKANU-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/CJNZZ7G46FJL5NF6CJHNTYKANU-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/CJNZZ7G46FJL5NF6CJHNTYKANU-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/CJNZZ7G46FJL5NF6CJHNTYKANU-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/CJNZZ7G46FJL5NF6CJHNTYKANU-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/CJNZZ7G46FJL5NF6CJHNTYKANU-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: Souloukna Mourga, 50, who has been a farmer for more than 35 years and lost two hectares of cotton and one of millet due to flooding, plods through his submerged red millet field in Dana, Cameroon October 25, 2022. REUTERS/Desire Danga Essigue/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



NAIROBI, Sept 4 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;An initiative to boost Africa&#8217;s carbon credit production 19-fold by 2030 drew hundreds of millions of dollars of pledges on Monday as Kenyan President William Ruto opened the continent&#8217;s first climate summit.



In one of the most anticipated deals, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) committed to buying $450 million of carbon credits from the Africa Carbon Markets Initiative (ACMI).



The ACMI was launched at Egypt&#8217;s COP27 summit last year. African leaders are pushing market-based financing instruments such as carbon credits, which allow polluters to offset emissions through activities like planting trees or investing in renewable energy projects. 



Organisers of the three-day summit in Nairobi say they aim to showcase Africa as a destination for climate investment rather than a victim of floods, drought and famine.



African governments see carbon credits and other market-based financing instruments as critical to mobilize funding that has been slow to arrive from rich-world donors. Africa has received only about 12% of the money it needs to cope with climate impacts, according to a report last year by the non-profit Climate Policy Initiative.



&#8220;For a very long time we have looked at this as a problem. It is time we flipped and looked at it from the other side,&#8221; Ruto told delegates.



&#8220;We must see in green growth not just a climate imperative but also a fountain of multi-billion dollar economic opportunities that Africa and the world is primed to capitalise,&#8221; he said.



Several speakers at the summit, however,&nbsp;said they&nbsp;had seen little progress toward accelerating climate financing.



&#8220;There hasn&#8217;t been any success for an African country in attracting climate finance,&#8221; said Bogolo Kenewendo, a United Nations climate adviser and former trade minister in Botswana.



Many investors still saw the continent as too risky, Bogolo said.



Kevin Kariuki, a vice president at the African Development Bank, told Reuters the deals announced on Monday were &#8220;very welcome&#8221; but did not come close to filling the climate financing hole.



He said African states would push at the COP28 later this year for the expansion of special drawing rights at the International Monetary Fund that could unlock $500 billion worth of climate finance, which could be leveraged up to five times.



Patricia Scotland, secretary-general of the Commonwealth of 56 countries, said the pledged funding was more than symbolic, as it showed people understood the emergency, but that current climate finance flows to Africa were still &#8220;shockingly low&#8221;.



&#8220;The private sector really remains an untapped opportunity that now must be seized,&#8221; Scotland told Reuters. &#8220;If you look at what we&#8217;ve got on thermal energy, on solar, on wind, on hydro, this is a powerhouse just waiting to be unleashed.&#8221;



More than 20 presidents and heads of government are expected to attend the summit from Tuesday. They plan to issue a declaration outlining Africa&#8217;s position ahead of a U.N. climate conference later this month and the COP28, which the UAE will host.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-investments">INVESTMENTS</h2>



The oil-producing UAE has been positioning itself as a climate financing leader in Africa. Emirati company Blue Carbon has been in discussions with Liberia and Tanzania to set up carbon credit trading by overseeing conservation of their natural resources.



The $450 million commitment was announced by Hassan Ghazali, a UAE climate investment official.



Climate Asset Management &#8211; a joint venture of HSBC Asset Management and Pollination, a specialist climate change investment and advisory firm &#8211; also announced a $200 million investment in projects that will produce ACMI credits.



Britain said UK-backed projects worth 49 million pounds ($62 million) would be announced over the course of the summit, and Germany announced a 60-million euro ($65 million) debt swap with Kenya to free up money for green projects.



Many African campaigners have opposed the summit&#8217;s approach to climate finance, and about 500 people marched in downtown Nairobi on Monday to protest.



They say carbon credits are a pretext for continued pollution by wealthier countries and corporations, who should instead pay their &#8220;climate debt&#8221; through direct compensation and debt relief.



Sultan Al Jaber, president of COP28, said carbon markets were an important tool to mobilise the trillions of dollars needed to confront climate change, but acknowledged that they face a &#8220;crisis of confidence&#8221;.



&#8220;A lack of a commonly-agreed standard is undermining their integrity and diminishing their value,&#8221; he said in a speech.



A working paper released by the Debt Relief for Green and Inclusive Recovery Project found that sub-Saharan African countries face annual debt servicing costs that are nearly the same as their climate finance needs.



($1 = 0.7920 pounds)



($1 = 0.9265 euros)



(Reporting by Duncan Miriri and Simon Jessop; Additional reporting by Jefferson Kahinju; Writing by Aaron Ross; Editing by Hereward Holland, Angus MacSwan and Susan Fenton)

FILE PHOTO: Catastrophic floods in West Africa threaten food security for years to come in Dana

Hundreds of millions pledged for African carbon credits at inaugural climate summit

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="800" height="559" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/LYNXMPEJ83054_L.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-427205" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/LYNXMPEJ83054_L.jpg 800w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/LYNXMPEJ83054_L-300x210.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/LYNXMPEJ83054_L-129x90.jpg 129w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/LYNXMPEJ83054_L-768x537.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: People cross a flooded area in Muloza on the border with Mozambique after the aftermath of Tropical Cyclone Freddy, around 100 km outside Blantyre, Malawi, March 18, 2023. REUTERS/Esa Alexander/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



NAIROBI, Sept 4 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Kenyan President William Ruto kicked off Africa&#8217;s first climate summit on Monday by urging thousands of delegates in Nairobi to see the climate crisis as a unique opportunity for the continent to attract billions of dollars in investment.



Organisers say they anticipate hundreds of millions of dollars in deals to be announced at the three-day summit, during which they aim to showcase Africa as a destination for climate investment rather than a victim of floods, drought and famine.



African leaders are pushing market-based financing instruments such as carbon credits in a bid to mobilize funding that they say has been slow to arrive from rich-world donors.



&#8220;For a very long time we have looked at this as a problem. It is time we flipped and looked it from the other side,&#8221; Ruto told delegates.



&#8220;We must see in green growth not just a climate imperative but also a fountain of multi-billion dollar economic opportunities that Africa and the world is primed to capitalise,&#8221; he said.



Many African campaigners, however, have opposed the summit&#8217;s approach to climate finance, saying it advances Western priorities at the expense of the continent.



They say carbon credits, which allow polluters to offset emissions by funding green activities, are a pretext for wealthier countries and corporations to continue polluting.



&#8220;Africa needs funding from countries that have got rich off our suffering. They owe a climate debt,&#8221; said Mohamed Adow, the director of energy at the Power Shift Africa think tank.



About 500 people marched in dowtown Nairobi on Monday to protest the summit&#8217;s agenda and demand financial compensation for climate damage from rich countries.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-investments">INVESTMENTS</h2>



During Monday&#8217;s sessions, environment ministers, business executives and climate campaigners will discuss how to scale up climate finance and transform food systems.



More than 20 presidents and heads of government are expected to attend the summit from Tuesday. They plan to issue a declaration outlining Africa&#8217;s position ahead of a U.N. climate conference later this month and the COP28 U.N. summit in the United Arab Emirates from late November.



Companies and governments began&nbsp;announcing&nbsp;investments and financing commitments.



One of the top lenders in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rawbank, and global energy trader Vitol&nbsp;VITOLV.UL&nbsp;announced a $20 million investment in renewable energy, clean cooking and forest conservation in Congo.



Britain&#8217;s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said UK-backed projects worth 49 million pounds ($62&nbsp;million) would be announced over the course of the summit.



African countries are also hoping for debt relief from creditors to free up money to invest in renewable energy, conservation and climate adaptation.



A new working paper released by the Debt Relief for Green and Inclusive Recovery Project found that sub-Saharan African countries face annual debt servicing costs that are nearly the same as their climate finance needs.



Even as they push for investments in renewable energy, many African governments also want to develop hydrocarbons resources, particularly natural gas, arguing they can accelerate the continent&#8217;s development while not contributing significantly to global carbon emissions.



Protesters at the Nairobi march voiced opposition to gas development, which they said would worsen climate change and was part of a &#8220;neo-colonial scramble&#8221; for Africa&#8217;s resources.



($1 = 0.7920 pounds)



(Reporting by Duncan Miriri; Additional reporting by Jefferson Kahinju; Writing by Aaron Ross; Editing by Angus MacSwan)

LYNXMPEJ83054_L

Kenya’s Ruto urges Africa to seize climate financing opportunities

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="521" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/RH3KC54SWJMBFOMPWHYWNRFCQY-820x521.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-427145" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/RH3KC54SWJMBFOMPWHYWNRFCQY-820x521.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/RH3KC54SWJMBFOMPWHYWNRFCQY-300x191.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/RH3KC54SWJMBFOMPWHYWNRFCQY-142x90.jpg 142w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/RH3KC54SWJMBFOMPWHYWNRFCQY-768x488.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/RH3KC54SWJMBFOMPWHYWNRFCQY-1536x977.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/RH3KC54SWJMBFOMPWHYWNRFCQY-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: Farmers prepare to transport bags of rice following a poor harvest due to the effects of the worsening drought due to failed rain seasons, in Mwea, Kenya November 30, 2022. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



NAIROBI, Aug 31 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;How to finance environmental priorities and shift the focus from&nbsp;Africa&nbsp;as victim of floods and famine will be central to the debate at the continent&#8217;s first climate summit next week, while activists resist plans to expand carbon markets for funding.



African countries contribute only about 3% of global carbon emissions, according to U.N. figures, but are increasingly exposed to the impact of extreme weather linked to climate change, including the Horn of Africa&#8217;s worst drought in decades.



A report last year by the non-profit Climate Policy Initiative found Africa has received only 12% of the finance it needs to cope with climate impacts.



&#8220;We aim to start changing the conversation from&nbsp;Africa&nbsp;the victim of hunger, famine and floods,&#8221; said Kenyan Environment Minister Soipan Tuya ahead of the summit beginning on Monday in Nairobi.



&#8220;The new narrative &#8230; should be an&nbsp;Africa&nbsp;that is willing and ready to attract capital that is timely, equitable and at scale to lead the world in tackling climate change.&#8221;



The thousands of delegates are expected to debate solutions ahead of a U.N. climate summit next month in New York in September and the COP28 U.N. summit in the United Arab Emirates from the end of November.



The summit&#8217;s organisers also say they expect deals worth hundreds of millions of dollars to be concluded in Nairobi.



Market-based financing instruments such as carbon credits that allow polluters to offset emissions by funding activities including tree-planting and renewable energy production are high on the list of funding options.



Governments have also shown interest in debt-for-nature swaps. Gabon earlier this month completed Africa&#8217;s first such deal by buying back a nominal $500 million of its international debt and issuing an eco-friendly amortising bond of equal size.



The transaction is meant to yield savings that can be used to fund conservation.



But the summit&#8217;s approach to climate finance has drawn criticism from civic groups, with more than 500 of them accusing organisers in an open letter of advancing Western priorities at&nbsp;Africa&#8217;s expense.



&#8220;These approaches will embolden wealthy nations and large corporations to continue polluting the world, much to&nbsp;Africa’s detriment,&#8221; the groups said in the letter.



Amos Wemanya, a senior adviser at Power Shift&nbsp;Africa, one of the signatories, said financing should come from richer countries meeting the commitments they have previously made to poorer ones but so far have only met in part.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-attracting-investment">ATTRACTING INVESTMENT</h2>



Host Kenya, which says it accounts for a quarter of the carbon credits traded in Africa, hopes to be a model for Africa&#8217;s ambitions in the market and has introduced legislation to try to attract investment.



In June, it hosted an auction where companies from Saudi Arabia bought more than 2.2 million tonnes of carbon credits.



One of the projects generating those credits is Kenya-based BURN Manufacturing&#8217;s production of clean cooking stoves to replace heavily polluting wood and charcoal-based fires.



The income from the carbon credits allows BURN to sell its stoves to poor Kenyans at a subsidised rate of $12 per unit, instead of the production cost of $40-50, said Chris McKinney, BURN&#8217;s chief commercial officer.



The company has sold more than 3.6 million stoves.



&#8220;We have still barely scratched the surface. The scale of the problem is massive,&#8221; he said.



One of the highlights of next week&#8217;s summit, according to a published agenda, will be a deal involving the United Arab Emirates and the&nbsp;Africa&nbsp;Carbon Markets Initiative (ACMI).



The ACMI was launched at the COP27 summit in Egypt last year with the aim of boosting&nbsp;Africa&#8217;s carbon credit production from 16 million in 2020 to 300 million by 2030 and 1.5 billion by 2050.



Responding to criticism of carbon credits, Joseph Ng&#8217;ang&#8217;a, chief executive of the summit&#8217;s secretariat, said they were an important tool to fight climate change but only one piece of the puzzle.



African nations will also continue to demand more funding from rich-world governments and seek additional recognition for the Congo Basin, the world&#8217;s second largest tropical forest, as a major carbon sink, summit organisers said.



(Reporting by Duncan Miriri; Additional reporting by Christophe Van Der Perre; Editing by Aaron Ross and Barbara Lewis)

FILE PHOTO: Farmers prepare to transport bags of rice following a poor harvest due to the effects of the worsening drought due to failed rain seasons, in Mwea

African climate summit seeks to shift focus to finance from floods, famine

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/43GMCITWJZNTBIAG7XSBZ6SEHU-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-427062" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/43GMCITWJZNTBIAG7XSBZ6SEHU-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/43GMCITWJZNTBIAG7XSBZ6SEHU-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/43GMCITWJZNTBIAG7XSBZ6SEHU-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/43GMCITWJZNTBIAG7XSBZ6SEHU-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/43GMCITWJZNTBIAG7XSBZ6SEHU-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/43GMCITWJZNTBIAG7XSBZ6SEHU-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: A man wearing face mask walks on the street during a day with polluted air in Beijing, China February 13, 2021. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



SINGAPORE, Aug 29 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Despite improvements in China, air pollution across the globe continues to pose the greatest external risk to human health, with countries in Asia and Africa suffering most of the impact, new research showed on Tuesday.



Around three quarters of the adverse health effects of air pollution is concentrated in just six countries &#8211; Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, China, Nigeria and Indonesia, the University of Chicago&#8217;s Energy Policy Institute (EPIC) said in its annual Air Quality Life Index (AQLI) report.



If hazardous airborne particles known as PM2.5 were brought down to levels recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), average life expectancy would rise by 2.3 years worldwide, saving a combined 17.8 billion life years, the report estimated.



While average world pollution levels have fallen slightly over the past decade, almost all of the improvement has been driven by China, where a 10-year &#8220;war on pollution&#8221; has seen PM2.5 fall by more than 40% since 2013.



&#8220;While China has had remarkable success in its war against air pollution, the trend in other parts of the world is going in the opposite direction,&#8221; said Christa Hasenkopf, AQLI&#8217;s director.



PM2.5 in South Asia has risen by nearly 10% since 2013, she said, cutting average life expectancy in the region by around five years. Growing energy consumption in central and western Africa was also turning particulate pollution into a growing health threat on par with HIV/AIDS and malaria.



Virtually all of Southeast Asia is also now considered to have &#8220;unsafe levels of pollution&#8221;, with average life expectancy cut by 2-3 years.



China&#8217;s average PM2.5 concentrations stood at 29 micrograms per cubic metre in 2022, but it still remains significantly higher than the WHO recommendation of 5 micrograms.



While improvements in China have helped raise average life expectancy by 2.2 years since 2013, it could rise by another 2.5 years if the country were to meet the WHO standard.



&#8220;We haven&#8217;t turned the corner on air pollution yet, though China&#8217;s example shows us that the issue is a tractable one,&#8221; Hasenkopf said.



(Reporting by David Stanway; Editing by Stephen Coates)

FILE PHOTO: Polluted day in Beijing

Asia, Africa bear brunt of pollution health burden – research

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/TP5R6HBNPZIGTOANNA35PFUUUM-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-421437" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/TP5R6HBNPZIGTOANNA35PFUUUM-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/TP5R6HBNPZIGTOANNA35PFUUUM-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/TP5R6HBNPZIGTOANNA35PFUUUM-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/TP5R6HBNPZIGTOANNA35PFUUUM-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/TP5R6HBNPZIGTOANNA35PFUUUM.jpg 960w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">European Union flags flutter outside the EU Commission headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, September 28, 2022. REUTERS/Yves Herman</figcaption></figure>



CAPE TOWN, Aug 28 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;The European Union is scouting Africa to back clean jet fuel projects under its Global Gateway infrastructure fund, an EU official said, ahead of an anticipated boom in demand for environmentally sustainable air travel.



The EU has pledged to dedicate half of its 300 billion euro ($324 billion) infrastructure plan, seen as a rival to China&#8217;s Belt and Road Initiative, to Africa.



The fund has already backed renewable plants, green hydrogen initiatives, vaccines and education projects in Africa, and the official said it was now looking into sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).



&#8220;In the context of the Global Gateway, the Commission is currently looking into possible co-financing mechanisms and guarantee instruments,&#8221; said Stefan De Keersmaecker, a European Commission spokesperson.



&#8220;SAF production in the African continent has great potential.&#8221;



SAFs are low-carbon fuel alternatives for the aviation industry and can be made from various crops among other feedstock sources.



The EU will launch a 4 million euro capacity-building project by Dec. 31 to support SAF feasibility studies and certification in 11 African countries and India.



Following feasibility studies, selected projects could draw funds from the Global Gateway, De Keersmaecker said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-saf-scramble">SAF SCRAMBLE</h2>



The aviation industry contributes more than 2% of global energy-related emissions, and the EU is mandating emissions reduction targets that will require airlines to use more SAF.



That will help create annual global demand of 450 billion litres of SAF by 2050, according to the International Air Transport Association, and has made Africa&#8217;s vast swathes of under-utilised agricultural land increasingly attractive.



There is currently no SAF production on the continent. And establishing feedstock supply chains will be a challenge in Africa where poor infrastructure, limited refining capacity and inadequate regulations could delay projects and drive up costs, analysts said.



&#8220;The greatest way to reduce the cost of SAF in the African continent and to have SAF that is produced sustainably is through local manufacturing,&#8221; Allan Kilavuka, chief executive at Kenya Airways&nbsp;KQNA.NR, said.



Companies including Italy&#8217;s Eni&nbsp;ENI.MI, South Africa&#8217;s Sasol&nbsp;SOLJ.J, Linde&nbsp;LIN.DE&nbsp;of Germany and Danish firm Topsoe are nonetheless forging ahead with African SAF and biofuel investments.



Frankline Omondi, environmental manager at the African Civil Aviation Commission, said the body wants SAF production to launch in at least two African countries within a few years, with potential for a third.



South Africa, Kenya and Ethiopia are likely candidates, he said.



($1 = 0.9249 euros)



(Reporting by Wendell Roelf; Additional reporting by Duncan Miriri in NairobiEditing by Promit Mukherjee, Joe Bavier and Mark Potter)

TP5R6HBNPZIGTOANNA35PFUUUM

EU infrastructure fund eyes African clean jet fuel projects

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="462" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/107281094-1691050703126-gettyimages-625667906-93552422-820x462.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-426631" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/107281094-1691050703126-gettyimages-625667906-93552422-820x462.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/107281094-1691050703126-gettyimages-625667906-93552422-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/107281094-1691050703126-gettyimages-625667906-93552422-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/107281094-1691050703126-gettyimages-625667906-93552422-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/107281094-1691050703126-gettyimages-625667906-93552422.jpeg 929w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Smoke billows from an unauthorized steel factory, foreground, on November 4, 2016 in Inner Mongolia, China. To meet China’s targets to slash emissions of carbon dioxide, authorities are pushing to shut down privately owned steel, coal, and other high-polluting factories scattered across rural areas. (Photo by Kevin Frayer/Getty Images) Kevin Frayer | Getty Images News | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



Developing nations will need more than $1 trillion each year to make significant progress in climate transition, according Mari Pangestu, a former World Bank official.



“The estimate is like $1 [trillion] to $3 trillion a year for developing countries to be able to transition,” she told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia” on Thursday.



The lack of funding has made it difficult for those countries to reduce their high carbon emissions and shift to clean energy, Pangestu added. This has led to tensions between developing nations and the developed world, which are pushing for more progress in climate related issues.



“This debate is going to continue unless developed countries can see that this is about development and climate — not just about climate,” Pangestu, a former trade and tourism minister for Indonesia, said.



“And that has been the source of tension. You can’t separate the two,” she added, underlining the “key word is actually — transition.”



“How do you transition from the high emission now to clean energy? It will require us to have resources.”



This was “part of the bone of contention,” for the lack of progress made in the recently concluded Group of 20 climate ministers meeting in India, Pangestu said.



The talks in late July wrapped up without consensus on crucial matters to address the climate crisis such as the issue of financing to support developing countries, the document showed.



India’s climate change minister Bhupender Yadav, who chaired the meeting, acknowledged there had been “some issues about energy, and some target-oriented issues.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-sharp-criticism"><a></a>Sharp criticism</h2>



The July climate meeting was seen as a chance for the world’s biggest polluters to take concrete steps ahead of a G20 leaders’ meeting in September in New Delhi and the COP28 Summit in the United Arab Emirates in December.



The failure to reach a deal drew withering criticism from environmental activists.



“Europe and North Africa are burning, Asia is ravaged with floods yet G20 climate ministers have failed to agree on a shared direction to halt the climate crisis which is escalating day by day,” said Alex Scott of climate change think-tank E3G.



“Reports of Saudi Arabia and China stifling the forum’s political space to even discuss a new direction on the energy transition fly in the face of their claims of defending the interests of developing countries,” he added.



China rejected reports it had obstructed climate discussions at the G20 climate meeting, saying “relevant reports totally run counter to the facts.”



The Ministry of Foreign Affairs insisted the meeting “achieved positive and balanced outcomes.”



“However, some countries introduced geopolitical issues as an obstruction and the meeting failed to adopt a communique. China finds it regrettable,” the ministry said without elaborating.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><a></a>‘Scale and urgency’</h2>



There’s a “scale and urgency” to address the climate crisis, said Pangestu, adding it requires greater effort from all stakeholders.



“Part of that will have to come from countries’ own resources,” she noted. “Also part of it has to come from multilateral development banks and other sources, which are going to reduce the cost and risks — so that you can get private sector to come in.”



Pangestu argued that if developed nations want to move away from fossil fuels and “retire coals plants early,” more support should be provided to developing countries.



“What South Africa and Indonesia have done more recently on this particular issue is say: ‘That’s fine and well, you want us to get out early’ — but who’s going to fund the cost of getting out early?” she asked.



“These are private companies, you have to also compensate them. There’s a legal issue, financial issue. So this is where we need to really get into the policies and the reforms.”

107281094-1691050703126-gettyimages-625667906-93552422

Over $1 trillion needed for developing nations’ climate transition, says ex-World Bank official

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="555" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/NB3ELGCKPZPZTPXNLGU2ZBN3P4-820x555.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-425655" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/NB3ELGCKPZPZTPXNLGU2ZBN3P4-820x555.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/NB3ELGCKPZPZTPXNLGU2ZBN3P4-300x203.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/NB3ELGCKPZPZTPXNLGU2ZBN3P4-133x90.jpg 133w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/NB3ELGCKPZPZTPXNLGU2ZBN3P4-768x520.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/NB3ELGCKPZPZTPXNLGU2ZBN3P4-1536x1039.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/NB3ELGCKPZPZTPXNLGU2ZBN3P4-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen testifies at a House Financial Services Committee hearing entitled &#8220;The Annual Testimony of the Secretary of the Treasury on the State of the International Financial System&#8221; on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., June 13, 2023. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



PARIS, June 22 (Reuters) &#8211; U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Thursday the World Bank should add disaster clauses to debt agreements with poorer countries, speaking ahead of a summit in Paris that will discuss how to boost crisis financing for low-income nations.



Such clauses could be part of a broader reform of the World Bank to free up more funds, Yellen told journalists in the French capital.



&#8220;We would also like to see the World Bank offer borrowers the option to add climate resilient debt clauses to their loan agreements. These clauses would help ease pressures on countries if a natural disaster strikes,&#8221; she said.



Yellen, whose country is the World Bank&#8217;s biggest shareholder, added multilateral development banks should be reformed to become more efficient before shareholders think of injecting more money into them.



&#8220;Even with the capital that the World Bank and the MDBs have there is clearly potential &#8230;to increase financing capacity,&#8221; she said, adding an additional 200 billion dollars could be unlocked over a decade.



&#8220;We are certainly not ruling out at some later stage a capital increase. But I think that these banks need to function better individually and as a system first, expand their mission to address global challenges, better utilize the capital they have.&#8221;



(Reporting by Leigh Thomas, writing by Silvia Aloisi, editing by Toby Chopra)

Treasury Secretary Yellen testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington

World Bank should add disaster clauses to debt agreements- Yellen

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="462" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107254786-1686544079782-gettyimages-1493977567-dsc_4402-2_labpzngl-820x462.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-425398" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107254786-1686544079782-gettyimages-1493977567-dsc_4402-2_labpzngl-820x462.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107254786-1686544079782-gettyimages-1493977567-dsc_4402-2_labpzngl-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107254786-1686544079782-gettyimages-1493977567-dsc_4402-2_labpzngl-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107254786-1686544079782-gettyimages-1493977567-dsc_4402-2_labpzngl-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107254786-1686544079782-gettyimages-1493977567-dsc_4402-2_labpzngl.jpeg 929w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Women fill water from a municipal tank on May 26, 2023 in the Peth Taluka village in India. Ritesh Shukla | Getty Images News | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



Water scarcity is seen as the most significant and potentially most impactful component of the wider climate crisis, and researchers say that large Asian economies like India and China will be the most affected from these water shortages.



Asia is an industrialization hub that is experiencing the most rapid rates of urbanization, and this would require a copious amount of water, Arunabha Ghosh, the CEO of the Council on Energy, Environment and Water, told CNBC on the sidelines of Singapore’s annual Ecosperity Week last Tuesday.&nbsp;



“It’s not just the old industries like steel making, but newer ones like manufacturing semiconductor chips and the transition to clean energy that are going to require a lot of water,” Ghosh said. “Asia is the growth engine of the world, and these industries are new drivers for its economic growth.”&nbsp;



Global fresh water demand is expected to outstrip supply by 40% to 50% by 2030. Ghosh warned that water scarcity must not be viewed as a sectoral issue, but one that “transcends the entire economy.”



Asian economies “must understand that it is a regional common good and it is in their own interest to mitigate the risks that come their way in order to prevent the economic shocks that severe water scarcity will impose,” he said.&nbsp;



India, now the world’s most populous nation, will be the hardest hit from water scarcity. Despite holding 18% of the world’s population, it only has enough water resources for 4% of its people, hence making it the world’s most water-stressed country, the World Bank said. 



The South Asian nation relies tremendously on its monsoon season to meet its water demands, but climate change has caused more floods and droughts to hit the country, and has exacerbated its water shortage.&nbsp;



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-china-is-in-the-same-rocky-boat"><a></a>China is in the same rocky boat</h2>



According to independent think tank the Lowy Institute, approximately 80% to 90% of China’s groundwater is unfit for consumption, while half of its aquifers are too polluted to be used for industry and farming. Fifty-percent of its river water is also unfit for drinking, and half of that is not safe for agriculture as well.&nbsp;



Although the world’s second-largest economy has made progress in its transition toward clean energy, its power system remains largely dependent on coal. And if there is no water, there will be no coal. 



“Water is an essential input for the generation of coal power plants, and if water becomes scarcer or is not available for power generation, that plant becomes ineffective,” Ghosh highlighted.&nbsp;



Other developing countries in the region are in similar situations, but their water crises could be harder to solve. Countries like the Philippines are not as privileged and resilient, so there’s a “huge imbalance in the water crisis that we’re facing,” Shanshan Wang, a Singapore water business leader at sustainability consultancy Arup, said. 



India and China are close to seas and rivers, and are more threatened by rising sea levels, but they can afford technology and innovation for better water storage systems, Wang told CNBC on the sidelines of the Singapore International Water Week last Tuesday.&nbsp;



Meanwhile, Wayne Middleton, the Australasian water business leader for Arup said that “we need to stick our hand up and say that we have not recognized the value of our river systems and we have exploited them for industry uses and agriculture.” “We have only recently seen the damage that we have done,” he said.



Countries in the West won’t likely remain unscathed by the risks associated with this water crisis. Europe’s water problem is expected to get worse as resources grow increasingly scarce due to the deepening climate emergency. The region saw temperatures go through the roof in spring, after experiencing a winter heatwave that took a toll on its rivers and ski slopes. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><a></a>Sectors most affected</h2>



Taiwan, home to Asia’s largest semiconductor industry, has once again succumbed to water shortages less than two years after battling the worst drought it had seen in a century. Huge amounts of water are needed to power the plants and manufacture the semiconductor chips that go into our digital devices, and supply can be hindered if shortages occur. 



“Taiwan is a big user of hydropower and it always faces a dilemma on whether to store water for its semiconductor industry to utilize, or if the water should be released so they can have more hydroelectricity power,” Wang highlighted.



“Droughts and floods are both a problem for Taiwan, so the industry is unlucky and vulnerable,” she added. 



However, Wang noted that although many manufacturing industries do need water to function, water is not actually being used up and could be recycled.&nbsp;



“Water scarcity is not particularly problematic to these industries because a lot of the water can be recycled. The process pollutes the water, and many industries might just want to dump the water directly back into the ecosystem instead of purifying and reusing it,” she said.&nbsp;



“Now that there is a crisis, there are opportunities for businesses to think about how to close the loop … They cannot just take whatever is available in abundance for themselves.”&nbsp;



Water is also playing a huge role in the planned energy transition, and the lack of water could impede countries’ transition to net-zero. In 2022, China experienced its worst heatwave and drought in six decades. Blistering temperatures dried up areas of the Yangtze River, impeding its hydroelectricity capabilities — the country’s second biggest power source. 



To alleviate energy risks, the country approved the highest number of new coal-fired plants since 2015 last year. Beijing authorized 106 gigawatts of new coal power capacity in 2022, four times higher than a year earlier and the equivalent of 100 large-fired power plants. 



“We need a big energy transition to renewables to power our new water supplies, and we need our water supplies to be available for energy security,” Middleton said. “We need to start bringing those two conversations together a lot more.”



Economies that are heavily dependent on agriculture could also see output drop significantly and food security would be at further risk.&nbsp;



According to Australia’s Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, the value of agricultural production is expected to fall by 14% to reach $79 billion in 2023 to 2024. This is due to drier conditions that are expected to reduce crop yields from record levels in 2022 to 2023. 



“We can certainly build new water supplies and provide water to industries, customers and cities in Australia, but we’re not really able to sustain enough water in longer periods of drought,” Arup’s Middleton pointed out.&nbsp;



“Of course we we have to make water available for our cities and our big economies and our communities, but it leaves behind a growing risk for&nbsp;food production and the agricultural sector,” he said.&nbsp;

107254786-1686544079782-gettyimages-1493977567-dsc_4402-2_labpzngl

The scarcity of water is emerging as a global economic threat. With China and India looking the most at risk

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/GettyImages-1240090144-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-419915" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/GettyImages-1240090144-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/GettyImages-1240090144-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/GettyImages-1240090144-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/GettyImages-1240090144-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/GettyImages-1240090144-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/GettyImages-1240090144-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The World Bank Group headquarters in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Tuesday, April 19, 2022. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) slashed its world growth forecast by the most since the early months of the Covid-19 pandemic, and projected even faster inflation, after Russia invaded Ukraine and China renewed virus lockdowns. Photographer: Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



The World Bank says the climate change fight demands a focus on long neglected structural challenges that are worsening the impact of natural disasters in Africa and other developing countries.



“Some of those structural challenges span from years of environmental degradation,’’ Anna Bjerde, the bank’s Managing Director for Operations told CNBC Africa after seeing villages devastated by Cyclone Freddy in Malawi in February and March.



The World Meteorological Organization says the cyclone may have been the longest in history. Over five weeks, it destroyed roads and other vital infrastructure in Madagascar, Malawi and Mozambique. Officials estimate about two million people were displaced while more than a thousand died.



According to the United Nations, changing rainfall patterns and more extreme weather threaten Africans’ food, water and socio economic development and more needs to be done to help the continent cope better.



Bjerde, back in the region for the first time since taking up the operations role last month, says she was enthused by the energy of the Malawian people and the government’s response in helping rebuild communities.



“I saw an incredibly resilient population where a lot of people want to make a change, and a lot of innovation around sustainable solutions like renewable energy, like more climate-smart solutions in agriculture and solutions for the most vulnerable and poor to have access to clean water,” she said.



But countries like Malawi will need more help from the World Bank and other development institutions to help build climate resistant economies by improving their infrastructure, Bjerde said.



The bank has a twin approach to this, she said, outlining short-term measures such as providing extra resources to governments, and identifying long-term priority projects to build inclusive economies.



“The broader development community’s role is to continue to support with technical solutions, with financing, with building capacity and perhaps most importantly making sure that these solutions are really inclusive.’’



Developing countries also need to involve their private sectors, she said, addressing challenges such as access to markets and finance, providing basic infrastructure and rebuilding value chains as part of an overall effort to improve business environments, especially given rising public debt levels.



“I am very worried by the increased level of debt that we are seeing and actually… we are seeing right now that about of 60 percent of low income countries in the world either at risk of debt distress or already at debt distress levels,” she added.



The bank was playing its part in its new operating model which was discussed at this year’s Spring meetings in Washington DC. The model among other things seeks to boost the bank’s capital and address borderless global challenges at the country level.

IMF And World Bank Headquarters During Virtual Spring Meetings

World Bank Says Climate Change Fight Must Address Structural Deficits

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="461" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/107222994-1681198621846-gettyimages-1242239375-Coastal_Tidal_Flat_Energy_Industry_In_China-820x461.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-424173" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/107222994-1681198621846-gettyimages-1242239375-Coastal_Tidal_Flat_Energy_Industry_In_China-820x461.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/107222994-1681198621846-gettyimages-1242239375-Coastal_Tidal_Flat_Energy_Industry_In_China-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/107222994-1681198621846-gettyimages-1242239375-Coastal_Tidal_Flat_Energy_Industry_In_China-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/107222994-1681198621846-gettyimages-1242239375-Coastal_Tidal_Flat_Energy_Industry_In_China-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/107222994-1681198621846-gettyimages-1242239375-Coastal_Tidal_Flat_Energy_Industry_In_China-1536x863.jpeg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/107222994-1681198621846-gettyimages-1242239375-Coastal_Tidal_Flat_Energy_Industry_In_China-scaled.jpeg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Solar was the fastest-growing source of electricity for the 18th consecutive year, the report said, rising by 24% year-on-year and adding enough power to meet the annual electricity demand of South Africa. Future Publishing | Future Publishing | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



Record growth in wind and solar last year pushed worldwide electricity generation to its cleanest-ever level, a report found, reflecting a renewable energy boom that researchers say could herald the “beginning of the end of the fossil age.”



The analysis published Wednesday by independent climate think tank Ember found that 12% of the world’s power came from solar and wind in 2022, up from 10% of global electricity generation in 2021.



Solar was the fastest-growing source of electricity for the 18th consecutive year, the report said, rising by 24% year-on-year and adding enough power to meet the annual electricity demand of South Africa.



The report found that the increase in wind generation, which added 17% in 2022, could have powered almost all of the U.K.



“We are entering the clean power era,” said Małgorzata Wiatros-Motyka, senior electricity analyst at Ember and lead author of the research. “The stage is set for wind and solar to achieve a meteoric rise to the top. Clean electricity will reshape the global economy, from transport to industry and beyond.”



Wiatros-Motyka added, “A new era of falling fossil emissions means the coal power phasedown will happen, and the end of gas power growth is now within sight.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-much-more-needs-to-be-done"><a></a>‘Much more needs to be done’</h2>



Researchers said that the analysis — which was based on electricity data from 78 countries last year and represents 93% of global power demand — provides the first accurate picture of the electricity transition in 2022.



It shows that more than 60 countries now generate over 10% of their electricity from wind and solar.



Renewables and nuclear sources were collectively found to have accounted for 39% of global electricity generation in 2022 — in a new record high.



Despite this progress, researchers said that the dramatic build-out of wind and solar was still not fast enough to fulfil all of the world’s increasing electricity needs. Consequently, the report noted that coal and other fossil fuels met the remaining gap, driving up emissions to a new record high.



Coal, the world’s dirtiest fossil fuel, was found to be the single largest source of electricity worldwide last year, producing 36% of global power.



Burning fossil fuels, such as coal, oil and gas, is the chief driver of the climate emergency.



“Much more needs to be done to ensure that developing countries are not left behind and locked into high carbon futures,” said Damilola Ogunbiyi, CEO and special representative of the U.N. Secretary-General for Sustainable Energy for All.



Ogunbiyi said the fact that coal power remained the single largest source of electricity worldwide last year reaffirmed the point that the power sector is off track to meet net-zero targets. “The deployment of wind and solar needs to be massively and urgently accelerated.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><a></a>Have power sector emissions peaked?</h2>



The Ember report said that 2022 may come to mark the peak of electricity emissions and the final year of fossil power growth, with clean power set to meet all demand growth in 2023.



Analysts projected a 0.3% dip in fossil generation this year, with steeper falls expected in subsequent years, as wind and solar deployment accelerate.



The International Energy Agency said last year that the electricity sector needs to move from being the highest-emitting sector to being the first sector to reach net zero by 2040 — if the global economy is to decarbonize by the middle of the century.



For this to happen, analysts at Ember said, wind and solar must account for 41% of the global power mix by 2030 — a sharp rise from the 12% observed in 2022.



Li Shuo, senior policy advisor at Greenpeace East Asia, described China as “the 800-pound gorilla when it comes to the global power sector.”



“This is not only because of China’s sheer scale, but also a concerning trend of its electricity sector development. China has no doubt been leading global renewable energy expansion. But at the same time, the country is accelerating coal project approval,” Li said.



“This won’t carry the country far to truly decarbonize. Rapid power sector reforms are needed to put the country back to the carbon neutrality vision it has set for itself.”

107222994-1681198621846-gettyimages-1242239375-Coastal_Tidal_Flat_Energy_Industry_In_China

‘Entering the clean power era’: Wind and solar generated a record amount of global power in 2022

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="462" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/107217548-1680163374068-gettyimages-1249134960-AFP_33BW9AA-820x462.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-423948" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/107217548-1680163374068-gettyimages-1249134960-AFP_33BW9AA-820x462.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/107217548-1680163374068-gettyimages-1249134960-AFP_33BW9AA-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/107217548-1680163374068-gettyimages-1249134960-AFP_33BW9AA-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/107217548-1680163374068-gettyimages-1249134960-AFP_33BW9AA-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/107217548-1680163374068-gettyimages-1249134960-AFP_33BW9AA.jpeg 929w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The EU has pledged to wean itself off Russian fossil fuels by 2027 in response to President Vladimir Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Christian Charisius | Afp | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



The European Union is poised to ramp up its 2030 renewable energy targets, accelerating a shift away from fossil fuels as the bloc seeks to rapidly cut emissions and reduce its dependence on Russia.



Negotiators from the European Council and Parliament on Thursday reached a provisional deal to source 42.5% of the 27-nation bloc’s energy from renewable technologies such as wind and solar by the end of the decade, EU lawmaker Markus Pieper said via Twitter.



Pieper described the agreement as “a good day for Europe’s energy transition.”



The deal is said to include an additional 2.5% “indicative top-up” to allow the bloc to reach a 45% share. It is set to replace the EU’s current renewable energies directive target for a 32% share of renewable energy by 2030, which has been in place since Dec. 2018.



The proposal must now be approved by EU member states’ representatives in the Council and then in Parliament. Such agreements are typically given with minimal changes.



The EU has said it aims to be carbon neutral by 2050. In the medium term, it wants net greenhouse gas emissions to be cut by at least 55% by 2030, which the EU calls its “Fit for 55” plan.



The “Fit for 55” package was first presented in July 2021 and seeks to align the EU’s climate and energy legislative framework with its 2050 climate neutrality objective.



Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine since Feb. 2022 and an ensuing energy crisis have fundamentally changed the region’s energy landscape in recent months. The bloc’s lawmakers have come under pressure to bring the region’s targets in line with this new reality.



The EU has pledged to wean itself off Russian fossil fuels by 2027 in response to President Vladimir Putin’s hostilities in Ukraine.



Research published in late February by independent energy think tank Ember showed that the EU’s projected installation rate of so-called clean energy technologies was on track to outpace expectations of its “Fit for 55” package.



Analysts at Ember warned that the EU was at risk of “killing the momentum” of its energy transition by sticking with a low target.



The burning of fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas, is the chief driver of the climate crisis.



— CNBC’s Anmar Frangoul contributed to this report.

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Energy, Environment & Climate Change

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‘Entering the clean power era’: Wind and solar generated a record amount of global power in 2022

EU agrees to ramp up 2030 renewable energy targets, accelerating shift from fossil fuels

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