Executive Summary

African leaders and negotiators came to COP26 with well-coordinated joint policy positions and high ambition. But the result fell short of what they need. Despite African leaders and negotiators achieving some progress on key African priorities at COP26, ultimately the final outcomes were incommensurate with the scale of the continent’s needs. It is on this premise that the Africa 2-5-9 Project was birthed out of the need to put basic infrastructure in place so that African countries can compete on equal footing.

Africa and climate change: Time for urgent action

Africa has the second fastest growing economy of any region in the world, and more than half of global population growth between now and 2050 is expected to occur in Africa. Sustaining this growth without big increases in near-term environmental and health impacts requires integrated planning to identify cost effective and efficient solutions.

Africa is also considered particularly vulnerable to climate change. Climate adaptation is a key issue in Africa’s current and future development, therefore reducing the rate of warming in the near term is particularly relevant to Africa. As preparations begin for the ‘Africa’ COP27 in Egypt in November, urgent action is needed to build on Glasgow’s unfinished business, hence, the AFRICA 2-5-9 PROJECT initiated by HRH Princess Dr. Moradeun Ogunlana, Founder and CEO of African Women’s Health Project International at the ADIPEC Oil and Gas Conference in Abu Dhabi, UAE. Our ultimate goal is to have the full partnership of the United Arab Emirates on this quest to bring the needed infrastructure development and economic empowerment to various communities across Africa. This is demonstrated as the UAE not only leads in innovation needed for the continent, but the UAE people have a genuine love and respect for the Africa continent.

Collective and individual action ahead of COP27

As COP27 takes place in Egypt in November 2022, AWHPI Global Foundation envision that with Africa 2-5-9 Project, it is the perfect venue to highlight Africa’s realities, priorities, and climate-vulnerability so there is a need for much collective and individual action now. African institutions are vital to provide strategic and technical expertise, and financial institutions by catalyzing private capital. For individual countries, there is a need to inject real urgency and a systemic approach into cross-government climate change action, to enact long-term strategies for achieving net zero so they become pipelines of investment projects seeking investment partners with credible proposals.

Climate change seriously threatens sustainable development, poverty reduction and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly in Africa. The adverse impacts of climate change are already manifesting themselves on the continent in more frequent occurrences of climate events such as floods, droughts, and heat waves. The major concerns for Africa’s key economic sectors with disastrous consequences include a heightened threat of food security, inadequate water resource availability, degeneration in natural resources productivity, diminished biodiversity, decline in human health viability, increasing land degradation, increasing desertification, and coastal zone recession.

The AWHPI Global Foundation initiated the Africa 2-5-9 Project as it recognizes that climate change also provides an opportunity for Africa to adopt a development pathway that is climate resilient and less carbon-intensive—one that promotes clean, efficient energy technologies and the sustainable management of natural resources such as land, water and forests. Such a development pathway would help reduce the exposure of the vulnerable communities in Africa to the adverse impacts of climate change, while at the same time contribute to the global greenhouse gas emission reduction efforts. It is within this context that addressing the challenges of climate change on the continent remains a core priority for the Foundation while tying it to the UN SDG goals 2, 5 and 9.

Africa is the second largest and second most populous continent in the world with a landmass of about 30.2 million km2 and population of over 1 billion people. The continent spreads across 6% of the total surface area of the earth and accounts for about 15% of the world’s human population. Africa encompasses many climate regimes with its geographical area and location as key factors. The continent straddles the equator, and it is the only one that stretches from the northern to southern temperate zones. The Africa 259 Project is a new partnership project to support climate action in Africa led by AWHPI Global Foundation, officially announced at the ADIPEC Oil and Gas Conference in Abu Dhabi, UAE in November 2021 by HRH Princess Dr. Moradeun Ogunlana, Founder and CEO of the African Women’s Health Project International (AWHPI) - UN Ambassador.

The Africa 2-5-9 Project agreement requires all African countries to act, while recognizing their differing situations and circumstances. Under the Agreement, countries are responsible for acting on both mitigation and adaptation. We will also work on implementing a workable infrastructure development plan, most especially for rural areas and communities across Africa

The agreement not only formalizes the process of developing national plans, but also it provides a binding requirement to assess and review progress on these plans. This mechanism will require countries to continuously upgrade their commitments and ensure that there will be no backtracking. This Africa 259 Project agreement is a clarion call to governments that they are ready for implementing the next phase of the United Nations Sustainable Development Agenda.

WHY WE NEED TO DO SOMETHING NOW

The world has warmed before, but never this quickly, and it is due in large part to human activities. For instance, the changes in the Arctic between just six years ago and now are shocking. People in most parts of the world are seeing and feeling the impacts We can limit global temperature rise to less than 2 degrees if we act now. We need all countries and all sectors of society to act now—it is in the interests of everyone. It is doable. Taking climate action now makes good economic sense. The more we delay, the more we pay. We can promote economic growth, eradicate extreme poverty, and improve people’s health and well-being by acting today.

EQUITY AND FAIRNESS IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

The real action is happening at the country level, or even at the city or local level. It is there that governments and businesses are working to reduce their carbon emissions and to build climate resilience. The movement toward greater action is gaining momentum. At the international level, there is still the need to continue the maintain the momentum toward universal ratification of the agreement, as well as the adoption of rules to guide the implementation of the Agreement. That is why there is such great need for this our Africa 2-5-9 Project is so crucial.

Time is on no-one’s side

It also presents an invaluable opportunity for Africa to move into a new era of cleaner, more sustainable, inclusive development. Despite delays and disappointments, COP26 elevated the urgency of climate finance, adaptation, and loss and damage, providing a platform from which to advance African interests.

That is why the AWHPI Global Foundation is taking the lead under the auspice of the Africa 2-5-9 Project to gather African leaders, civil society, and financing institutions to come together to use the coming months to elevate the African agenda, prepare tangible strategies and projects, and further reinforce Africa’s climate change ambition and leadership. The case for urgent action is clearer than ever, and time is on no-one’s side.

A race we can win

Affordable, scalable solutions are now available to enable countries to leapfrog to cleaner, more resilient economies. The pace of change is quickening as more people are turning to renewable energy and a range of other measures that will reduce emissions and increase adaptation efforts. But climate change is a global challenge that does not respect national borders. Emissions anywhere affect people everywhere. It is an issue that requires solutions that need to be coordinated at the international level and it requires international cooperation to help developing countries move toward a low-carbon economy.

To address climate change, countries adopted the Paris Agreement at the COP21 in Paris on 12 December 2015. Implementation of the Paris Agreement is essential for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, and provides a roadmap for climate actions that will reduce emissions and build climate resilience. The agreement provides a pathway forward to limit temperature rise to well below 2 degrees, maybe even 1.5. The agreement provides a mechanism to increase the level of ambition.

The Paris Agreement is an ambitious, dynamic, and universal agreement. It covers all countries and all emissions and is designed to last. This is a monumental agreement. It solidifies international cooperation for climate change. It provides a way forward. The Paris Agreement sends a powerful signal to markets that now is the time to invest in the low emission economy. It contains a transparency framework to build mutual trust and confidence as it will serve as an important tool in mobilizing finance technological support and capacity building for developing countries. And it will also help to scale up global efforts to address and minimize loss and damage from climate change. Paris is a beginning—we now must implement the Agreement. But we have taken a giant step forward, most especially when it comes to the countries on the continent of Africa. Hence the Africa 2-5-9 Project!

INVESTMENT AND BUSINESS OPPORTUNITES FOR INVESTORS

The Paris Agreement helps us to avoid locking in a level of ambition that would make the well below 2 degrees goal improbable. Countries will have an opportunity to review their collective effort against the global goals prior to formally submitting their national contributions to the new agreement. This exercise will be repeated every five years. The Paris Agreement will put us on a pathway towards limiting global temperature rise to well below 2 degrees Celsius

PROJECTS AND PROGRAMS TO TACKLE IN AFRICA

The Africa 2-5-9 Project will host a quarterly regional Trade and Invest conference and Exhibition where the participants will have an opportunity to discuss firsthand with delegates and principals of companies looking for investment opportunities in Africa

AFRICA IS OPEN FOR BUSINESS

The aim of the Conferences and Exhibitions is to bring qualitative international investors from a wide range of interests of business and that is in line with the United Nations SDG goals. The inaugural Conference and Exhibition aims to highlight the potential investment opportunities available in Africa today.

• Applying for incentives, partnerships, and license agreements in Planning and Development. Opportunities in transport and logistics investment and partnerships
• Securing Finance and Capital Investment by establishing Business and Government Partnerships.
• Agriculture - Considering Advanced Agriculture Techniques - advantageous opportunities for development. Establishing Commercial Pilot Schemes – Start-up Businesses
• Government support in the Regions. Development and Utilization of Resources by utilization of Resources in Aquaculture to support the blue economy in the lakes and seas.
• Empowering Women in Business – Women are key factors to Growth and Development in Commence and Industry.
• Working to promote shared prosperity, economic and sustainable, development, and entrepreneurship.
• Exploring labor training programs and workforce development for commerce and industry.
• An introduction to forming intellectual and financial partnerships. Promoting Private Sector Investment.
• An introduction to forming intellectual and financial partnerships. Promoting Private Sector Investment.

timeline

First Two years: Call to Action of the Africa 2-5-9 Project through getting of signatures of Nations across Africa and gathering of Data and needs of the country, most especially in the rural communities, and exploring international partners for infrastructure needs.

Second Fifth year: Travel throughout the African continent while gathering data and evaluating infrastructure development projects that needs to be in place to get the community to be able to participate equally on the climate action agenda.

Third Ninth year: Matching partners and investors in implementing the needed infrastructure development projects that is outlined from the gathering of data across the Continent to conclude with the UN Sustainable Development Goals in year 2030.

Team

• Her Excellency, HRH Princess Dr. Moradeun Ogunlana, Lead
• Dr. John Galiatos
• Dr. Brenda Morant
• Barrister Nkem Kemi Raji 30 Consultants: TBA

Donation