Plans are underway for the upcoming Africa Climate Summit as the African Union Secretariat Office was launched in Nairobi, Kenya, on Friday. The summit is set to take place in Kenya’s capital city from 4th to 6th September, and will be co-hosted by Kenya and the African Union, alongside the Africa Climate Week that runs from 4th to 8th September. The Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) in downtown Nairobi will be the venue for both events, and the costs will be covered by a USD 1 million sponsorship from the Government of Denmark through the Danish Embassy in Nairobi.

Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for Environment, Climate Change, and Forestry, Hon Soipan Tuya, unveiled the Secretariat Office, and stated that over 10,000 delegates are expected to attend the twin events. These delegates will include government delegations, representatives from UN agencies, multilateral development institutions, financial institutions, and the private sector. Hon Tuya also expressed her gratitude towards President William Ruto for offering Kenya the opportunity to host the inaugural event, and thanked the African Union for trusting Kenya with this responsibility.

The summit, which has been themed “Africa Together for Bold, Innovative, and Resourced Climate Action: Unlocking Climate Finance and Green Investments”, will aim to consolidate Africa’s voice ahead of the 28th UN Conference of Parties (COP28) in the United Arab Emirates and craft the continent’s green growth blueprint. According to Hon Tuya, President Ruto is clear that the Summit will chart a green growth pathway for the African continent, setting the stage for Africa to lead the globe towards a more ecologically responsible global industrialization, catalyzed by financing that is accessible, adequate, and affordable. The summit will also provide a platform for consolidating Africa’s voice ahead of this year’s United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and the UN Secretary General’s Climate Summit in September, as well as COP28 later in the year.

Hon Tuya noted that organizers expect participants to establish new partnerships that will increase climate financing and enhance investments in low carbon and climate resilient development in Africa. The summit will largely be an in-person event and will explore six thematic areas covering climate finance, mitigation and green growth, climate adaptation and resilience, loss and damage, climate vulnerable groups, and research innovation and technology.

The Africa Climate Summit and Africa Climate Week Secretariat will be led by Dr Pacifica Ogolla, the Director for Climate Change at Kenya’s Ministry for Environment, Climate Change and Forestry, and Ms Leah Wanambwa of the African Union Commission (AUC). The Planning and Steering Committee will be headed by Eng Festus Ngeno, the Principal Secretary in Kenya’s State Department for Environment and Climate Change, his Foreign Affairs counterpart Dr Korir Sing’oei, and Dr. Harsen Nyambe Nyambe, AUC’s Director for Sustainable Environment and Blue Economy.

Hon Tuya is in charge of the Executive Oversight Committee alongside her Foreign and Diaspora Affairs counterpart Dr Alfred Mutua and Ambassador Jossefa Sacko of AUC, while the Executive Committee is led by President William Ruto, his Union of the Comoros counterpart Azali Assoumani, and AUC Chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat. With these dedicated teams in place, the Africa Climate Summit is poised to be a resounding success that will unlock much-needed climate finance and green investments for the African continent.