Vanguard Nigeria
By Kingsley Adegboye
The high level meeting just concluded in Marrakesh, Morocco on the effect of Climate Change on Agriculture and Food Production in Africa saw 27 African countries confirm their commitment to placing the Adaptation of African Agriculture (AAA) at the heart of COP22 negotiations by adopting the AAA Initiative Marrakesh Declaration.
At the conclusion of the high-level meeting held in Marrakesh on September 30, 2016, around the initiative for the Adaptation of African Agriculture, 20 ministers and 27 delegations adopted the Marrakesh Declaration, which consolidates these countries’ commitment to placing the Adaptation of African Agriculture at the heart of COP22 negotiations.
Launched in April 2016, the triple A initiative declaration seeks to reduce Africa’s agriculture vulnerability to climate change. The initiative which was launched in Morocco aims at promoting and fostering the implementation of concrete projects that will help improve land and agricultural water management, food security as well as the management of the effects of climate change on agriculture and food production.
The initiative further seeks to consciously place the Adaptation of the African Agriculture at the centre of all debates and negotiations on climate and to obtain a substantial part of the climate funds for Africa.
After two days of discussions among politicians, scientists, academics, private-sector leaders, and representatives from international organisations, the meeting concluded with the adoption of the Marrakesh Declaration. In all, 27 African countries have adopted the Declaration, marking the inception of a coalition that aims to place the Adaptation of African Agriculture at the heart of COP22 negotiations.
COP22 is the 22nd session of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) entered into in 1994, aimed at reducing greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere. The Conference of the Parties (COP) was designated as the supreme governing body of the Convention.
By virtue of this Convention, all the Parties have common but differentiated responsibilities. In addition, they take into account the specific nature of their national and regional development priorities, goals and circumstances.
By this declaration, The AAA coalition is determined to respond to the high expectations pinned on COP22 – which will run from November 7 to 18 in Marrakesh in order to make it the “COP of Action” and the “COP of Africa.”
The actions and objectives of the Triple Initiative declaration among other things include to endorse the principle of a larger, more effective and efficient public and private funding, as well as the principle of monitoring the funds disbursed for the Adaptation of African Agriculture, with an easier access to climate funds for African projects among others.
