19 implementing existing strategies such as the Climate Risk Management and Adaptation Strategy (CRMA, 2009) and the Green Growth Framework (African Development Bank, 2014). The CRMA was developed with the aim of reducing climate vulnerability and promoting resilience into existing and future Bank’s investments in Africa. Following this, the Bank developed and implemented its first-ever Climate Change Action Plan (CCAP-I, 2011– 2015), which was followed by the second Climate Change Action Plan (CCAP-II, 2016–2020). Under CCAPII, the Bank made marked progress towards its objective of allocating 40% of its total project approvals annually as climate finance by 2020, increasing the share from 9% in 2016 to 36% in 2019. CCAP-II in general aimed to promote an enabling environment for African countries in the implementation of effective adaptation and mitigation actions by specifically supporting access to climate finance. The Bank’s guidance instruments (CRMA, CCAP-I and CCAP-II) have been supplemented by specialized decision support tools that were developed to help mainstream climate change considerations into its investments. A notable example is the Bank’s Climate Safeguards System (CSS), which entails a climate change screening of projects and a set of Adaptation Review and Evaluation Procedures (AREP). The CSS is currently being updated to align with the Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs)’ joint framework for alignment with the Paris Agreement Building Block on adaptation. The Bank has also entrenched the mainstreaming of climate change and green growth considerations into its Country Strategy Papers (CSPs) and Regional Integration Strategy Papers (RISPs). Amongst the African Development Bank’s recent targets and key performance indicators on climate change (beyond the 40% annual allocation target and the $25 billion mobilization target for the 2020–2025 period) were the commitments to the following: • Screen 100% of the Bank’s project portfolio for climate risks and opportunities, to mainstream climate change considerations into the projects, including through policybased operations. • Achieve parity between adaptation and mitigation finance by 2020. • Significantly increase Africa’s access to external climate and environmental finance. The Bank has made significant progress towards the achievement of these goals, and by 2019 over 90% of its projects and 100% of its country strategy papers and regional integration strategy papers were based on climate-informed design. Furthermore, in 2020, 63% of the Bank’s climate finance was allocated to climate adaptation and 37% to mitigation. The Bank also recognizes that its efforts on climate change can have a multiplier effect across Africa and globally when it operates in concert with other MDBs and partners on this pressing challenge. It has adopted a coordinated approach to climate finance through the joint MDBs’ Common Principles on Climate Finance, covering both mitigation and adaptation, to bring about consistency in the definition and application of climate change mitigation- and adaptation-related projects. Collectively with other MDBs, the Bank has adopted a joint framework for alignment with the Paris Agreement — a six-pronged approach (built on the six principles of mitigation, adaptation, climate finance, strategy and policy development, reporting, and internal alignment) — to ensure that the MDBs demonstrate an ambitious and consistent stance on supporting meaningful action on climate change, aligned to the goals of the Paris Agreement. The Bank’s new Strategic Framework on Climate Change and Green Growth builds on these successes and the lessons learned to date. It maintains the four policy pillars of the second Climate Change Action Plan, while enhancing ambition in alignment with the objectives of the Paris Agreement. It also brings a renewed focus on strategic approaches — closely interlinked to the Bank’s other strategies on gender, fragility, private sector development, capacity development, and economic governance. Through these strategies, the Bank can be an influential and effective driver of action on climate change and green growth. The approaches and strategies articulated in this document are intended to strengthen climate resilience in Africa, accelerate lowcarbon development, integrate climate-compatible growth with green growth, and expand the availability of, and access to, climate finance on the continent. Achieving the vision espoused by the policy and strategy within the framework calls for concrete measures such as mainstreaming climate change and green growth considerations in all of the Bank’s projects. It calls for integrating climate change and green growth in all country and regional strategies, ensuring that all of the Bank’s investments are screened for climate change risks (including transition-related risks) and incorporate adequate risk management measures and safeguards. All the Bank’s operations must be based on climate-informed designs and adhere to consistent climate finance parameters and principles jointly developed by the MDBs. Introduction
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