The Board of Directors of the African Development Fund (ADF), the concessional window of the African Development Bank Group, on Thursday approved grants worth $20.56 million to finance the fourth expansion of Banjul Port in The Gambia.

The funding comprises an ADF grant of $13.71 million and another $6.85 million grant from the Transition Support Facility window. The project will also receive a $450,000 grant from the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Programme (AAAP) a joint initiative of the African Development Bank and the Global Centre on Adaptation, for technical assistance to mainstream climate resilience into the expansion. AAAP will use cutting-edge climate analytics to identify and quantify the impacts of physical climate risk on the port infrastructure and provide adaptation investment options to climate-proof it.

The expansion will be financed in parallel with a private investor who will be selected competitively by the Gambian government.  The World Bank and the African Development Bank supported the Banjul Port’s previous expansions.

The fourth expansion program entails an extension of the port jetty by 345 meters to accommodate up to three ships simultaneously instead of one currently. It also provides for the expansion of the container terminal area by 22,000 m2 to create space for unloading ships, replacement of a non-functioning ferry plying the Banjul and Bara crossing and widening port access roads by 3km to ease congestion. Information and communication processing systems will also be procured for efficient linkages between customs and the terminal operating system.

Upgrading the port will significantly reduce ship turnaround time and cut costly congestion and surcharges, enabling reductions in sea freight costs and demurrage payments. The works will boost the facility’s capacity to meet growing traffic and improve efficiency in operations and management as it digitizes its procedures. The introduction of green and low-carbon emission ferries will make the port infrastructure more climate-friendly and climate-resilient. The project is also expected to empower women's groups through gender-sensitive procurement and provide jobs, especially for the youth.

At the end of November 2022, the Bank Group had 12 active operations in The Gambia, valued at $166.6 million.  Eighty percent (80%) of these are financed through its ADF window. The transport sector represents 55.6% of the portfolio, the largest share, followed by agriculture and rural development with 24%. Energy sector projects constitute 12% of the portfolio.

Contact: 

Kwasi Kpodo, Communication and External Relations Department, African Development Bank, email: media@afdb.org(link sends e-mail)

The African Development Bank and the Global Center on Adaptation hosted a virtual dialogue on Monday last week to discuss climate adaptation related to the Port of Banjul Fourth Expansion Project in Gambia.

The proposed project will increase cargo handling and storage capacity of the terminal in order to cope with increasing cargo volumes and trade.

The dialogue was attended by officials from Gambia’s Port Authority, the National Environment Agency, the National Roads Authority, the Department of Fisheries, the Department of Parks and Wildlife Management, the Department of Water Resources, Maersk Line Gambia, clearing and forwarding agency HM Trading, the Great Institute and civil society. The discussions centered on the climate hazards the Port of Banjul is exposed to, and the impact of these hazards on the Port’s assets, operations, and services.

The African Development Bank and European Investment Bank are considering financing the proposed expansion of the Port of Banjul, estimated at $114 million. To this end, the African Development Bank has committed $531,275 to the Gambia Port Authority to finance a feasibility assessment and investment preparation studies to lay the groundwork for the project.

Within the framework of the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program (AAAP) – a partnership between the African Development Bank and the Global Center on Adaptation (GCA), GCA is providing technical
assistance worth around €200,000 to mainstream climate resilience into the Expansion Project, utilizing cutting-edge climate analytics to identify and quantify the impacts of physical climate risk on the investment and provide adaptation investment options to climate-proof the investment.

The findings from the climate analytics revealed that climate hazards could lead to cumulative economic damage to the Port of Banjul estimated at $27 million over the next 30 years. This is about 23% of the estimated investment required to upgrade the Port of Banjul. It also emerged that the Port could lose up to 3% of its revenue annually due to the impacts of physical climate risks.

Winners of the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program’s 2021 YouthADAPT Challenge have received training to equip them to produce and scale climate-related innovation and create green jobs.

The challenge competition awards business grants of up to $100,000 to young entrepreneurs and micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises in Africa to develop innovative solutions on climate adaptation and resilience.

During the three-day workshop, the 2021 winners – 10 representatives of enterprises from Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon, Kenya and Zambia – received training in financial management and fundraising. Winning enterprises also received training on budgeting and cash flow projection, record keeping, and executing solid business plans.

The 10 entities are developing solutions in critical social and economic sectors affected by climate change, including agriculture; waste management; water resources and sanitation; renewable energy and energy efficiency; waste management and ecosystem restoration. Half of the enterprises are women-led businesses. 

The training also instructed participants in how to position their enterprises in the market in order to offer an attractive funding proposition.

Ifeoluwa Olatayo of Soupah Farms-en-market in Nigeria, said she learned a lot during the training, including “how best to review the company’s finances and budget against unexpected shortfalls.”

Another participant, Juveline Ngum Ngwa of Mumita Holdings Limited in Cameroon, acknowledged the importance of budgeting in her enterprise’s overall success and security. “It allows us to better understand whether our business has enough revenue to pay its expenses,” Ngum Ngwa said.

Carolyne Mukuhi of Kimplanter Seedlings in Kenya said: “We look forward to this great journey towards a successful, impactful climate-adaptable business. A great world together.”

In addition to the training, the winning enterprises will be provided with mentorship and support to expand partnerships, knowledge sharing and learning through a network of young entrepreneurs in climate adaptation. The challenge also offers its winners an opportunity to participate in a 12-month business accelerator program to help them scale up their businesses, deepen their impact and create decent jobs.

An annual competition, the challenge falls under one of the pillars of the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program, namely empowering youth for entrepreneurship and job creation in climate adaptation and resilience. The strategic goal is to strengthen inclusive growth and broaden investment and economic opportunities for youth in Africa by providing training, mentorship, and financing to youth-led businesses.

The Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program is a partnership between the African Development Bank and the Global Center on Adaptation.

The African Development Bank’s contribution to the YouthAdapt Challenge was sourced from the Youth Entrepreneurship and Innovation Multi-donor Trust Fund.

The Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program (AAAP) hosted a session titled, “AAAP: Transformative Adaptation to Accelerate and Scale Climate Action” at the Virtual Gobeshona Global Conference on 29 March. The session focused on policy shifts, the enabling environment, financing, community engagement and private sector involvement to accelerate and scale climate adaptation in Africa.

The session brought together policy makers, sustainable financiers, climate resilience experts and youth advocates to discuss the latest report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) that calls for increased speed and scale in implementing adaptation actions.

“Climate change impacts are already occurring, faster and more severely than previous IPCC reports indicated,” said Dr. Rebecca Carter, the Acting Director, Climate Resilience Practice at the World Resources Institute, setting the scene for the session. “This new report makes it clear that we are already facing irreversible losses and damages to human societies and ecosystems around the world, “Carter added.

Prof. Philip Antwi-Agyei, an Associate Professor at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology and Lead Author of IPCC’s special report on the impacts of global warming of 1.5 °C said there is the need to incorporate indigenous knowledge with scientific knowledge to develop the most effective adaptation interventions and solutions.  Farmers, use indigenous knowledge to predict drought and rainfall and this knowledge is important for adaptation action, Antwo-Agyei added.

Zambia Ministry of Green Economy and Environment official Chitembo Kawimbe Chunga said adaptation should be integrated into local and national development plans.

She added that laws, policies and regulations on adaptation exist in Zambia that show where and how to adapt. Zambia is working with development partners including the African Development Bank to explore best practices for adaptation and resilience building among communities. Chunga is also the National Coordinator of both the Transforming Landscapes for Resilience and Development and the Zambia Strengthening Climate Resilience projects.

The audience followed presentations on different funding sources, including green bonds and blended finance to mobilise finance for adaptation.

According to Peter Wamicwe, a Sustainable Finance Specialist at the CGIAR, “investors need to come in in numbers and have different areas of focus. Some can focus on financial returns while others on environmental and social impact.”

Crowding in different types of investors can reduce risk and achieve impact, Wamicwe said.

AAAP – a joint initiative of the African Development Bank and the Global Center on Adaptation – aims to mobilise $25 billion to drive adaptation across the African continent to strengthen food security for at least 10 million people, support one million youth with entrepreneurship skills and job creation, and integrate climate resilience into about $7 billion worth of infrastructure investments, among other results.

Speaking during the session, Senior Director for Africa at the Global Center on Adaptation, Prof. Anthony Nyong said that AAAP is a strong response to another crisis: climate change.

“What is crucial is that this program is an Africa-owned and Africa-led response to the continent's vulnerabilities and opportunities,” Nyong said.

In a panel discussion on the role of youth in climate adaptation, Aramide Abe, Regional Manager, Youth Jobs and Entrepreneurship, Global Center on Adaptation said youth have demonstrated ingenuity to drive adaptation solutions.

She added that youth-led start-ups on the continent are creating solutions and mobilising financing, and that “AAAP is supporting youth-led businesses on the continent to avoid the ‘valley of death’ that the majority of businesses on the continent go through due to lack of skills and funding.”

Alphaxard Gitau, a youthful dairy farmer in Kenya and market value chain specialist, said that while financing is available it needs to be structured in a way that meets the needs of youth

The panelists recommended putting adaptation finance in the hands of those who bear the brunt of climate change. They urged the use of a blend of public and private finance to target and tailor interventions and that the potential of youth should be harnessed in practical ways to effect change, and to scale and sustain adaptation actions across all spheres.

Click here to view a recording of the session