TH!NK post

Private sector has a role to play in fighting climate change

Published 15th October 2010 - 0 comments - 695 views -

By Ochieng’ Ogodo

[ADDIS ABABA] As climate change adverse impacts takes toll on Africa, the private sector will be required to play a greater role in helping the continent cope.

They will do this through provision of some of the funds required for adaptation and mitigation.

The Acting Manager, Energy Division, Eastern and Southern Regions of the African Development Bank, Emanuel Nzabanita, told the Seventh Africa Development Forum a misconception exists that climate change was a public sector affair but the private sector too has an important part to play.

“The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change estimates that the private sector will need to account for up to 86 percent financial flows required to address climate change mitigation and adaptation,” he said.

Because of this, he explained, the private sector is increasingly getting recognised as the engine that will drive capital flows into sectors that support climate change mitigation and adaptation.

Besides channeling funds for climate investment in Africa, the private sector could benefit from unique contributions that it makes through innovation technology, its ability to research and design resilient infrastructure and implementation of improved information systems and expertise in operating and maintaining big infrastructure projects.

Engaging the private will also facilitate market penetration and significant transfers of relevant technologies through joint ventures, foreign direct investment and within policy frameworks such as Clean Development Mechanism.

The sector, said Nzabanita, was an important contributor to help sector programmes and research agenda, and to promote improved knowledge and analytical tools for business and investors.

He said there are emerging business opportunities in helping others cope and the private sector should not be limited to managing its own climate exposure.

Citing provision of portable water as one of the opportunities, Nzabanita said purification and treatment of water, technologies such as desalination and waste water treatment facilities will be needed.

Turning to environment, the ADB official said a new global framework in which international agreements, national policy, state and local action converged in order to transform how energy generation and consumption was done was required.

That international structure would also evaluate economic structures and market polices. “This new framework must create the mechanism that catalyses significantly greater levels of private sector investment in climate change related activities in Africa,” Nzabanita pointed out.

He said various reasons accounted for local private sector players’ wide berth given to fighting climate change including lack of understanding opportunities that exist and also the inability to evaluate climate projects.

Many commercials banks also rely on short term deposits and an asset-liability mismatch was also limiting their ability and willingness to put in place financial products with longer term maturities typically needed for climate change investments.

“We need to make financing work for Africa. More works also needs to be done in changing the economies of climate change investments,” he stated.

Category: | Tags:



Comments

    • Remember my personal information

    Notify me of follow-up comments?

    --- Let's see if you are human ---

    Who are kings of the jungle: lions or zebras? Add a questionmark to your answer. (6 character(s) required)