Kenya opts to green its economy

By Charles Mutai and Herman Kwoba

Transitioning to a green economy means contributing to eradicating poverty as well as sustained economic growth, enhancing social inclusion, improving human welfare and creating opportunities for employment and decent work for all, while maintaining the healthy functioning of the Earth’s ecosystems.

A green economy, in the Kenyan context refers to a shift towards a development path that promotes resource efficiency and sustainable management of natural resources, social inclusion, resilience, and sustainable infrastructure development.

Kenya’s key policies and programmes that are supportive of a green economy include: investments in renewable energy; promotion of resource-efficient and cleaner production; environmental planning and governance; and restoration of forest ecosystems.

Highlights

The Kenya Green Economy Assessment Report (2014) indicated that Kenya is implementing various Green Economy initiatives and policies such as investment in renewable energy, promotion of sustainable production and consumption, pollution control and waste management, and environmental planning and governance.

Greening scenarios - which is based on Kenya-Threshold 21 (T21) model – show that a transition to green economy has positive impacts in the medium and long term across all the sectors of the economy.

Demonstration of a solar cooker at Jamhuri Energy Centre.Noah Lusaka/ALIN

The T21 Model is a uniquely customized planning tool for the long-term integrated development planning as well as carrying out scenario analyses of adaptation options under uncertainty in Kenya. 

The Model allows the cost of adaptation to be quantified, which is a pre-requirement for attracting much needed financing for adaptation.

The Kenya Green Economy Assessment Report (2014) underscores that green growth has the potential to build a transformative development pathway that will create green jobs, accelerate poverty reduction, support sustainable growth, and restore environmental health and quality as a foundation for future prosperity and well-being.

In this context, the development of a national Green Economy Strategy and Implementation Plan (GESIP) is almost finalized. The GESIP process is undertaken in collaboration with strategic partners; United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), African Development Bank (AfDB), World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA) and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).

Multi-stakeholder and multi-sectoral consultations have being held at the national and county levels. GESIP focuses on the promotion of resource efficiency, sustainable management of natural resources, social inclusion, building resilience, and sustainable infrastructure development.

Enabling conditions for Green Growth/ Economy in Kenya include Vision 2030 (implemented through five-year Medium Term Plans). Vison 2030 is Kenya’s long-term development blueprint which aims to transform the country into “a newly industrialized, middle-income country, providing a high quality of life to all its citizens in a clean and secure environment” by 2030.

The Constitution of Kenya 2010; Article 42, recognizes a healthy environment as a right and calls for “sustainable exploitation, utilization, management and conservation of the environment and natural resources.”

Conclusion

Green investments and innovation in Kenya are driven mainly by renewable energy, resource efficient and clean technologies, sustainable consumption, and production. Fiscal policies and leveraging international support are crucial in the implementation of the Green Economy Strategy.

Charles Mutai (PhD) is the Deputy Director of Climate Change Secretariat. E-mail drcmutai@gmail.com. Herman Kwoba is the national Coordinator Green Economy Transition Africa. E-mail kwoba.herman@gmail.com.

Source: Joto Afrika. Download a copy here

Climate action plans of poorest nations to cost $1 trillion

By Megan Rowling

PARIS - The world's 48 poorest countries will need to find around a trillion dollars between 2020 and 2030 to achieve their plans to tackle climate change - and those plans should be a priority for international funding, researchers said.

Estimates based on plans submitted by the least-developed countries (LDCs) toward a new U.N. deal to curb global warming show they will cost around $93.7 billion a year from 2020, when an agreement expected to be ironed out in Paris over the next two weeks is due to take effect.

That includes $53.8 billion annually to reduce emissions and $39.9 billion to deal with more extreme weather and rising seas, according to a report from the London-based International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED).

IIED Director Andrew Norton said the least-developed countries currently get less than a third of all international climate funding provided by wealthy governments.

"A fair and effective deal at Paris should prioritise the investment of international public climate finance for this group to implement their climate action plans, while agreeing measures to help better-off countries attract private climate finance," he said in a statement.

The least-developed countries - from Ethiopia to Zambia, and Yemen and Pacific island nations - are home to some of the poorest communities who are suffering the worst impacts of intensifying droughts, floods, storms and crumbling coastlines.

Yet they produce just a tiny fraction of the planet-warming gases that drive climate change.

Such countries have a widespread lack of resources and expertise to tackle climate change. However, nearly all have produced so-called Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) to a new global climate deal.

These plans set out how they will curb their emissions from 2020 - by shifting to renewable power sources, such as solar, or building cleaner public transport, for example.

Adama Wind farm,Addis Ababa,Ethiopia.REUTERS/Tiksa Negeri

They also outline what countries need to do to help their people live better with climate change impacts. In some cases, they say how much all this action will cost.

The IIED report noted that three countries - Burkina Faso, Djibouti, and Zambia - are showing "extraordinary commitment" by aiming to find more finance within their borders than beyond them.

"Even so, all LDCs agree that fulfilling their INDCs cannot be done without a significant contribution from international climate finance, whether it be public or private," it said.

The least-developed countries "cannot hope to implement their INDCs quickly enough alone", it added.

The countries will require technology sharing and help to build their capacity, as well as investment capital, particularly for high start-up costs. Much of the money must come from international sources, the report said.

On Monday, 11 donor governments pledged close to $250 million in new money for adaptation in the poorest countries at the start of the U.N. climate talks.

Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Sweden, Switzerland, Britain, and the United States announced contributions to a climate fund for the least-developed countries hosted by the Global Environment Facility (GEF).

It had been struggling to finance projects due to a lack of new support.

"We know that many billions are required over the next few years to fill the gap in climate finance, but the money pledged today is vital to help some of the most vulnerable people on the planet cope with the immediate impacts of our rapidly warming world," said GEF head Naoko Ishii.

Read the full story at Building Resilience and Adaptation to Climate Extremes and Disasters (BRACED

Pastoralism can pay - but you would not know it

By Megan Rowling, BRACED

Pastoralists know markets well, but markets do not know much about pastoralists - and that is one reason it can be hard for businesses to expand into dryland areas in East and West Africa, to offer their goods and services to livestock herders.

Researchers and organisations working to expand income options for pastoralist communities - who are struggling to deal with growing climate change impacts like drought - are gaining a better grasp of these remote rural economies.

But decades of neglect by policymakers and under-development mean it isn't easy for the private sector to open up new markets in the pastoralist regions of northern Kenya or eastern Ethiopia.

"There are high barriers to entry," said Chloe Stull-Lane a consultant with the Kenya Markets Trust, which is helping animal health and insurance companies, among others, expand into pastoralist areas.

One major problem is a lack of education, with herding communities’ generally scoring low on basic development indicators.

Samburu tribesmen during Maralal Camel Derby,Kenya.REUTERS/Goran Tomasevic

"Levels of education need to increase," Stull-Lane told a discussion on pastoralist economies at Development & Climate Days on the sidelines of U.N. climate talks.

Higher literacy would enable companies to provide information to potential clients and market themselves more easily. "Pastoralists haven't been very exposed to products and services," she added.

For companies wanting to offer financial and veterinary services, or start up livestock-related industries such as meat or dairy processing, it can be a challenge to find local staff with the right skills, so training requirements are high.

The Kenya Markets Trust is working with researchers, businesses, and policymakers through programmes funded by the British government and other donors to analyse and find solutions to the obstacles, and create market opportunities linked to the livestock industry.

For example, Stull-Lane said it was initially difficult to persuade an animal health firm and an insurance company to combine their distribution channels, to reduce costs and reach more people. However, three years on, they have followed the advice and sales have expanded fast.

In addition, there are people with money to spend in pastoralist regions. Achiba Gargule, a researcher at Bern University who comes from a pastoralist family, said it was a myth that all pastoralists are poor.

Many are, but some are wealthy thanks to large herds or working as middlemen between herders and markets, he said.

Read the full story at Building Resilience and Adaptation to Climate Extremes and Disasters (BRACED.

Kenya is taking bold steps to combat climate change

By Alex Awiti

Climate change describes larger than normal variability in weather and climate parameters, especially rainfall and temperature. Critics have debated the cause of climate change. However, the time for debate is long past. Unless we act more proactively, hundreds of millions of people will face more drought, more floods, more hunger, and more conflict.

That is why Kenya is not waiting. Kenya is taking bold adaptation and mitigation actions to combat the impacts of climate change. Climate change is reducing grain yields and causing food prices to rise steeply, especially in Africa.

Lower grain yields and food price spikes could lead to a 20 percent rise in malnutrition among children in Africa. Variable rainfall patterns are likely to constrain fresh water supply, compromising hygiene and increasing the risk of water-borne diseases, which kill over 2.2 million mostly children under five years of age in Asia and Africa.

Climate change is creating the perfect storm, with pandemics invigorated by warmer climate, water scarcity, hunger and malnutrition, and changes in disease vector ecology.

According to World Health Organisation (WHO), the direct cost to health, excluding costs in agriculture, water and sanitation, is projected to reach $2-4 billion annually by 2030. The World Bank estimates that $75 billion will be needed annually to deal with the impacts of climate change such as tropical diseases, decline in agricultural productivity and damage to infrastructure owing to sea-level rise.

Climate Smart Agriculture project in Kajiado Kenya.PHOTO:Noah Lusaka/ALIN

Climate change is an existential threat to “Our Common Future”, which requires much greater responsibility at individual, community, national and global levels to return our planet on a path of equitable and sustainable development.

This special issue of Joto Afrika for the 21st Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP21) presents a collection of articles, which demonstrate Kenya’s commitment and leadership in addressing the impacts of climate change.

The Government of Kenya understands its obligation to both its citizens and the community of nations with respect to taking decisive and appropriate measures that contributes to abating Greenhouse gas emissions, as well as enhancing resilience to the climate change impacts. Through its Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC), Kenya has embraced a low emission and climate resilient development strategy.

Kenya understands that the time to act is now. The country is in the process of finalizing its Climate Change Bill 2014 and the Climate Change Policy Framework.

These provide a legal and institutional framework for mitigation and adaption to the effects of climate change; coordination mechanism for formulation of programs and plans to enhance the resilience of human and ecological systems against the impacts of climate change; measuring, verification and reporting of climate interventions; guidance and measures to achieve low carbon climate resilient development.

Moreover, initiatives such as investments in geothermal energy generation, establishment of a sub-national adaptation fund (County Climate Change Fund), building a national greenhouse inventory to estimate emissions and removals from land based activities and the wide use of solar lanterns and cook stoves, in Narok and Samburu, demonstrates that the Country understands the urgent need for decisive action.

As the world converge in Paris at COP21, it is probable that there will not a definite global deal. However, I think we all have a moral obligation as citizens of the world to act responsibly and preserve the planet for posterity. COP21 must be about you and I, our communities and what our nations can do to curb global warming.

Download a copy of the special edition of Joto Afrika here

Alex O. Awiti, PhD Director, East African Institute of the Aga Khan University alex.awiti@aku.edu

Good agricultural practices key in ensuring profitable maize farming

By Bob Aston
 Adopting good agricultural practices is key in ensuring farmers make profit in maize production. Speaking during a two day Maize Value Chain Workshop at Olivia Court Motel in Sipili, Laikipia West Sub County on November 25-26, 2015, Mr. Moses Lokwawi, Ol-Moran Ward Crops Officer noted that farmers who harvest less than 15 bags per acre rarely make a profit.

Mr.Lokwawi from the ministry of Agriculture livestock and fisheries addressing farmers

He noted that land under maize cultivation in Ol-Moran Ward has been increasing while production has been declining over the years. During a farmer’s discussion session, participants noted that they are harvesting an average of 10 - 18 bags per acre. 

He said that the gross margin on maize does not auger well for farmers who harvest few bags, as they will realize losses unless they adopt best agricultural practices particularly during land preparation, soil and water conservation, planting and crop husbandry and post-harvest management.

“Sustainable practices and activities carried out in and off farm in crop production ensures the right quality and safety of food produce. This calls for responsible and ethical production and marketing of agricultural produce,” said Mr. Lokwawi.

He noted that land under maize production in 2005 was 2,100 acres and farmers managed to harvest 79,800 bags while this year 2015 with 4,970 acres under maize production farmers  managed to harvest 93,441 bags.

He noted that in a good year the whole of Laikipia County usually realize 1. 5 million bags of maize. Communities in the county consume 500,000 bags while farmers sell the surplus. He noted that the rise in cost of production calls for reduction in mechanical tillage and labour cost, which is possible through adoption of conservation agriculture.

He implored farmers to embrace record keeping and particularly Farm Records Management Information System (FARMIS-Kenya) as they are able to know at the end of a season whether they have made a profit or loss and to help in decision making particularly when deciding on which enterprise is more profitable.

Mr. James Kamau, Ol-Moran Ward Agriculture officer noted that soil fertility is lost through waterlogging, use of synthetic  pesticides, excessive use of DAP fertilizer which reduces the rate of organic matter decomposition, and burning of crop residue.

He urged farmers to use the recommended hybrid seeds like H600 series, H511, H513, H515, H517, H520, Pioneer 30G19, pan 67, Faida, Duma, and Katumani Composite.

Mr. Kamau from the ministry of Agriculture livestock and fisheries

The farmers were also encouraged to make use of the AgroZ and Purdue Improved Crop Storage (PICS) bags, which do not require use of chemicals before storing cereals. The bags are currently retailing at Ksh250 each.

Farmers learned the importance of investing in modern storage facilities like the household metallic silos as a solution to high maize postharvest losses caused by the maize weevil and large grain borer that are major destructive pests of stored maize.

A total of 85 farmers drawn from Ol-Moran Ward attended the workshop.  Its aim was to enhance farmer’s production skills on maize value chain, to share production and marketing experiences, to enhance systematic record keeping by maize farmers, to improve cereals aggregation and to reduce post-harvest grain losses.

The Arid Lands Information Network (ALIN) through Ng’arua Maarifa Centre in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, and Fisheries organized the workshop.

Laikipia cooperative receives a maize sheller

By Bob Aston

The Laikipia Produce and Marketing Co-operative Society on November 25, 2015 received a maize sheller from the Eastern African Grain Council (EAGC). Representative from Arid Lands Information Network (ALIN) witnessed the handover by EAGC at the cooperative store in Sipili town, Ol-Moran Ward.

The EAGC support is towards enhancing the capacity of the cooperative towards managing members and other smallholder farmer’s cereal produce during shelling.

The support is also towards ensuring that the cooperative becomes a village aggregation centre. This will enable the cooperative to buy cereals in bulk from members and then distribute and sell them to schools and other structured markets.

Maize sheller donated by East African Grain Council

Speaking during the handover, Mr. Kipyegon Kipkemei from EAGC urged the group to utilize the equipment by doing business with it and ensuring members of the cooperative are the ultimate beneficiaries.

“The maize sheller will be co-owned between the cooperative and EAGC for a period of three years. After that duration, we will decide whether to leave it to the cooperative or give it to another group,” said Mr. Kipyegon.

The maize sheller is worth Kshs. 65,000. It has a capacity of 6.5-horse power and can therefore shell 20-25 bags per hour. The tank can hold 3 litres of petrol. Other beneficiaries included Ndurumo Cereal Bank, Sipili Cereal Bank, Ol-Moran Cereal Bank and Muhotetu Grain Bank.

Shelling is an important post-harvest activity in maize as it reduces post-harvest losses. Use of shelling machine reduces breakage of cereals and deterioration, as it is faster.

Formed in 2013, the cooperative emerged from the work undertaken by ALIN through Ng’arua Maarifa Centre with the support of the Ford Foundation’s Expanding Livelihoods for Poor Households Initiative (ELOPHI).

Its mandate is mainly to aggregate the farming communities by pooling them together and empowering them to take control of their farm’s enterprises, aggregation of farm produce and collective marketing to enhance their bargaining power and profit margins.

Investing in Maize Value Chain in Ol-Moran Ward

By Bob Aston

The Arid Lands Information Network (ALIN) through Ng’arua Maarifa Centre in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, and Fisheries held a two day workshop on Maize Value Chain at Olivia Court Motel, Sipili in Laikipia West Sub County on November 25-26, 2015.

A total of 85 farmers drawn from Ol-Moran Ward attended the workshop. Its aim was to enhance farmer’s production skills on maize value chain, to share production and marketing experiences, to enhance systematic record keeping by maize farmers, to improve cereals aggregation and to reduce post-harvest grain losses.

Farmers keenly following proceedings during the workshop

Speaking during the opening of the workshop, Mr. Noah Lusaka, ALIN Projects Manager noted that the organization has been involved in improving farmer’s access to knowledge and skills through various Maarifa Centres in Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania.

He said that in Ol-Moran Ward the organization is promoting Maize, tree tomato and tomato value chains. Through a participatory approach in 2013, farmers had identified the three value chains as the priority areas in the ward.

“We have been organizing workshops and field days for farmers in the three value chains. We expect that the information gathered by farmers will help them adopt best agricultural practices and thus realize better returns,” said Mr. Lusaka.

He said that ALIN aims to strengthen the three value chains and ensure farmers play an active role in the value chains. He noted that the organization is keen in promoting the value chain approach as this can promote inclusive economic growth.

Some of the challenges listed by farmers included high input cost,  frequent droughts, substandard inputs, low soil fertility, human-wildlife conflict, lack of access to appropriate information, difficulty in accessing credit facilities, high cost of unskilled labour, pests and diseases, and high post-harvest losses.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, and Fisheries noted that land under maize cultivation in Ol-Moran Ward has been increasing while production has been declining over the years. Most farmers noted that they are harvesting an average of 10-18 bags per acre.  

Mr. Kipkemei from EAGC addressing the farmers

During the workshop, a lot of emphasis was on the importance of soil analysis as an aid to assessing soil fertility and plant nutrient requirements and management as well as adoption of best agricultural practices as the best ways of reversing the decline in maize production.

Mr. Kipyegon Kipkemei from the Eastern African Grain Council (EAGC) urged farmers to aggregate their cereals instead of selling cheaply to traders. 

He said that EAGC is working with cereal banks in the ward to ensure that they receive Warehousing Receipting System certification.

”Warehousing Receipting System helps in mobilizing agricultural credit by creating secure collateral for farmers. It also ensures better storage facilities as well as reduced risks in the agricultural markets,” said Mr. Kipkemei.

He said that farmers have the option to sell when they can get the best price for their cereals. This reduces exploitation during the harvest season when the farm gate prices are low.

The farmers learned about production practices and management, agribusiness and value addition, soil management, SOKO+ sms platform, warehousing receipting system (WRS), pests and disease control, harvesting and post-harvest management, maize record keeping system, storage, and storage facilities, and drying, shelling and grading.

Special issue of Joto Afrika out

By Bob Aston

The Arid Lands Information Network (ALIN) is pleased to present a special edition of Joto Afrika newsletter. This edition presents key initiatives the Ministry of Environment Natural Resources and Regional Development Authorities (MENRRDA) and its partners have undertaken in realizing a low emission and climate resilient development pathway.

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) through United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) supported the production of the special edition of the newsletter by funding the Low Emission and Climate Resilient Development (LECRD) Project, within the framework of the US Government led effort on Enhancing Capacity for Low Emission Development Strategy (EC-LEDS).

Joto Afrika, meaning “Africa is feeling the heat’ in Kiswahili is a series of printed briefings and online resources about low emission and climate change adaptation actions. The series helps people understand the issues, constrains and opportunities that people face in adapting to climate change and escaping poverty.

The  special issue of Joto Afrika

According to Richard L. Lesiyampe (PhD) MBS, Principal Secretary MENRRDA, the special edition had featured some initiatives made by non-state actors toward strengthening the national response to climate change.

This is to demonstrate that an effective climate response must involve all stakeholders working in a coordinated manner, hence harnessing different experiences and lesson for maximum effectiveness.

He noted that climate change presents a special global challenge to the social and economic development agenda. Kenya has taken important steps towards effectively addressing the phenomenon, including putting in place relevant policies and strategies.

The country, for example, was among the first in Africa to come up with a National Climate Change Response Strategy (NCCRS) in 2010. Thereafter in 2013, Kenya launched the National Climate Change Action Plan (NCCAP, 2013–2017), which is the blueprint for implementing the NCCRS.

Additionally, Kenya is in the process of formalizing both the National Climate Change Framework Policy and Climate Change Bill.

In response to the decisions adopted by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the country has now developed its Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC) on reducing Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions that was submitted in July 2015.

The INDC has an ambitious target of 30 per cent reduction in emissions by 2030. It is in line with the low carbon climate resilient development pathway, which Kenya has adopted.

Kenya has also set in place a mechanism for raising public awareness about climate change as a way of ensuring all-round involvement of citizens in combating its negative impacts and taking advantage of opportunities.

In a bold step to bring this about, the government has constructed a National Climate Change Resource Centre in Nairobi, which is open for public use. It is the national repository for climate change information relevant to Kenya.

The Resource Centre incorporates green building concepts such as use of solar power, biogas, and water recycling. The Centre has a library, amphitheater and training facilities for dissemination of climate related information.

A virtual online version of the Climate Change Resource Centre in the form of a one-stop climate change portal is currently under development to ensure widespread access of climate change information by the public.

It is our hope that readers will find this special issue informative and add value to their work on addressing the challenges and opportunities that come with climate change. You can download a copy of the special Joto Afrika issue here.

Can Paris climate deal end funding drought to help the poor cope?

By Megan Rowling, BRACED

BARCELONA - African governments will push hard at U.N. climate talks over the next two weeks to right what they see as a global wrong that is now becoming starker: a drought of financial support to help the people who are bearing the brunt of a warming planet.

As negotiations on a new deal to tackle climate change start in Paris on Sunday, millions of Africans are going hungry due to the combined impacts of a strong El Nino weather pattern and longer-term climate shifts, with drought and floods affecting Ethiopia, Somalia and Zimbabwe, to name but a few places.

In West Africa, creeping deserts and rising seas are increasingly driving people from their homes to migrate to other parts of the politically volatile region - and in some cases north towards Europe.

Yet money to help vulnerable people cope with climate pressures has not been forthcoming from international donors in anything like the amounts experts say are needed.

World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim said this week that African governments would come to Paris "thinking about the very clear justice issues that are very much present around climate change".

A man salvages furniture from flooded homes.REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin

"Any African leader will tell you that they've had very little role in putting the carbon in the air that's currently (there) but that they suffer most from the impacts of climate change: extreme weather events, the loss of arable land," he told journalists.

A recent report from the bank found that, without development that helps countries prepare for climate change, 43 million more people in sub-Saharan Africa - mostly in Ethiopia, Nigeria, Tanzania, Angola and Uganda - could fall into extreme poverty by 2030 due to lower crop yields, higher food prices and adverse health effects linked to climate change.

Despite these risks, funding for adaptation measures - including protecting infrastructure, growing hardier crops, building storm shelters, resettling at-risk families and issuing weather warnings - accounts for less than a fifth of total international funding for climate action.

The rest is spent on curbing greenhouse gas emissions by boosting renewable energy use and energy efficiency.

Read the full story at Building Resilience and Adaptation to Climate Extremes and Disasters (BRACED.

World Bank sets out plan to bolster Africa against climate change

By Megan Rowling, BRACED

BARCELONA - The World Bank aims to drive more funding into efforts to help African countries withstand climate change impacts and boost their clean energy production through a $16 billion plan revealed on Tuesday.

The "Africa Climate Business Plan" lays out investments to make the continent's people, land, water and cities more resilient to droughts, floods, storms and rising seas, increase access to green energy, and strengthen early warning systems.

World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim said sub-Saharan Africa is "highly vulnerable to climate shocks", which could have deep effects on everything from child stunting to malaria and food price increases.

"This plan identifies concrete steps that African governments can take to ensure that their countries will not lose hard-won gains in economic growth and poverty reduction, and they can offer some protection from climate change," he added in a statement.

The plan outlines measures for "fast-tracking" adaptation to climate change, costing almost $10.7 billion from 2016 to 2020.

Effects of floods in Banawa District, Kaduma, Nigeria.REUTERS/Stringer

They include helping some 10 million farmers adopt resource-efficient techniques and hardier crop varieties, improving water management in the Niger, Lake Chad and Zambezi basins, reducing coastal erosion, strengthening flood protection, and restoring degraded land and forests.

The African region requires $5 billion to $10 billion per year to prepare for global warming of 2 degrees Celsius, the plan said, an amount that could rise to $20 billion to $50 billion by mid-century.

But experts say pledges from some 170 countries to curb their planet-warming emissions would still permit global average temperatures to increase between 2.7 and 3.7 degrees from pre-industrial times, suggesting adaptation costs will be higher.

Levels of funding for adaptation in Africa today amount to an annual $3 billion at most, "which is negligible considering the needs", the World Bank plan said.

PARIS PRIORITY

Ahead of U.N. climate talks in Paris from Monday, tasked with agreeing a new global deal to curb global warming, the bank said its plan's emphasis on climate adaptation fitted priorities expressed by African states in their national action plans submitted as a basis for the deal.

Read the full story at Building Resilience and Adaptation to Climate Extremes and Disasters (BRACED.