This report addresses the question of how much money African states need to transition to a low carbon economy by 2030. The report states that African states must spend at least US$2.5tn by 2030 to meet their climate commitments. The report outlines that emission reduction makes up close to 80% of spending, with plans for adaptation to climate change costed at US$418 billion. Of this total spending, unconditional pledges by African states make up US$680 billion in spending, and roughly half of the emissions cuts promised.

In terms of financing, the report shows that every actor involved is partially at fault. Domestic governments should be making greater efforts to mobilise their own resources as well as encouraging the domestic private sector, international corporations, and financial institutions operating in Africa should increase their private investment where bankable projects are available, chiefly in the energy sector and international multilateral donors. Furthermore, African states must explore new sources of domestic revenue. Carbon pricing and a reduction in fossil fuel subsidies will almost certainly be necessary.

The report also suggests five recommendations that could help mobilise more resources for African states’ climate transition. The first is that international funding should be substantially more concessional, prioritising countries in debt distress. The second is that African states should investigate what changes they can make to their institutional architecture to enable greater climate spending, such as liberalisation of energy markets, subnational borrowing, and centralised coordination of climate planning. The third suggestion centres on the ‘demand side’ of climate finance, ensuring that human capital is developed to enable African countries to design credible climate finance investment plans and to deploy financial capital to optimal effect. Fourth, African states will need to explore new sources of domestic revenue, while the fifth suggestion is that certification of LULUCF projects and the emissions they mitigate should be standardised and independently assessed. Furthermore, climate finance tracking needs to better account for growing household climate spending and bilateral lending between developing countries.

Finally, the main ESG issues discussed in this report are related to the environment and climate change. The report highlights the enormous cost of the climate transition and shows that the largest emitters and economies account for the bulk of the financing needs.