Keywords

Capacity-building; climate change; Conference of the Parties; greenhouse gas inventories; impacts; vulnerability and adaptation assessment; greenhouse gas mitigation in Africa; national communications; technology transfer; education, training and public awareness

Abstarct

Capacity-building has long been recognized by African countries as one of the principal issues to be urgently addressed in order to support national and regional initiatives to effectively implement the provisions of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in ways that contribute to their efforts aimed at achieving sustainable development. This chapter briefly outlines the ecological and socio-economic impacts of projected climate change on Africa, and identifies the key capacity-building needs and concerns of African countries as described in their national communications, as well as in published literature. These needs include the capacity to (i) prepare national inventories of greenhouse gases; (ii) assess impacts, vulnerability and adaptation to climate change; (iii) undertake greenhouse gas mitigation analysis in major sectors of the economies; (iv) elaborate on education, training and public awareness programmes; and (v) cooperate in the development and transfer of climate friendly technologies. Other needs relate to capacities to mainstream the adaptation to climate change and thereby integrate the implementation of adaptation and mitigation measures within the framework of implementing national sustainable development plans and strategies.