The Sierra Leone Deputy Minister of Finance 2, Bockarie Kalokoh, met with colleague Ministers of Finance from Africa, in a panel discussion on Sustainable Budgeting Approach to Climate Finance at the International Cooperation Forum and meeting of African Ministers of Finance, Economy and Environment in Sharma Al Sheik, Egypt.
The adoption of green fiscal policies and macro-prudential regulation and climate-related stress testing can help African countries to be better prepared to face climate change.
The panel discussion shed light on the vital role of effective fiscal policies in accelerating economic development while furthering environmental and social objectives.
The African Ministers acknowledged the importance of climate financing in the face of the harsh realities of climate change mitigation and adaption in Africa.
They called for the establishment of Climate Finance Units in the Ministries of Finance which is to strengthen the understanding of the nature and value of the Sustainable Budgeting Approach and how the approach could help countries align public finance with climate finance targets.
They acknowledged and highlighted the special needs and circumstances of Africa, in particular, low energy access, debt, climate-induced displacement, accessibility to climate finance, and Africa’s needs to achieve social and economic development and eradicate poverty. Consideration resolutions were made to accelerate climate financing in the continent that will stimulate economic, environmental, and social programs.
The Ministers called upon multilateral development banks to increase their assistance to better support African countries’ trajectories in implementing long-term development plans, designing adaptation projects, and developing their NDCs based on their development needs.