UK avails US$9,3m for climate challenges
THE Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office of the United Kingdom has declared an extra £7,4 million ($9,63 million) in funding for the African Development Bank's initiative to help African nations build resilience and improve their ability to respond to climate-related challenges.
Gerard Howe, United Kingdom Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Head of Climate, Adaptation, Nature and Resilience Department, and Dr. Beth Dunford, AfDB Vice President for Agriculture, Human and Social Development at COP28 in Dubai.
Gerard Howe, United Kingdom Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office head of Climate, Adaptation, Nature and Resilience Department, and Dr Beth Dunford, AfDB vice president for Agriculture, Human and Social Development at COP28 in Dubai.
This announcement was made after officials from the UK and the Bank met on the sidelines of the COP28 UN climate summit in Dubai.
The financial commitment for the Multi-Donor Trust Fund of the Africa Disaster Risk Financing (ADRiFi) programme will enhance sovereign drought insurance protection, with a particular focus on Somalia, over the next three years.
UK Minister of State for International Development and Africa, Andrew Mitchell explained that Somalia bears one of the most devastating effects of climate globally. Somalia is at risk of several natural hazards, including drought, floods, cyclones, and climate-related diseases and epidemics.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs estimated 7.8 million people were affected by severe drought in Somalia at its peak in October 2022.