Realising African renaissance through science-policy dialogue on climate change adaptation and resilience ...

The Network of African Science Academies (NASAC) in collaboration with UNESCO organised a joint side event at the Africa Pavilion at the main venue of the COP21 at Le Bourget, France. The event which took place on 10 December 2015 was entitled: Realising African Renaissance through Science-Policy Dialogue on Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience: the Critical needs for Africa to invest in home grown Science and appropriate Blue and Green Technologies towards poverty alleviation and sustainable development.

Sponsors included NASAC, IOC-UNESCO, the InterAcademy Partnership, UNDP, and Africa Department of UNESCO. The Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie, upon the kind request of the Delegation of the Republic of Senegal to the COP21/CMP11, generously offered interpretation services at no charge. The event was also organised in collaboration with UNEP and ICSU Regional Office for Africa.

The event brought together a wide range of African and overseas partners including representatives from science academies, universities, private sector including oil and gas industries, policy makers including Diplomats and Ambassadors; civil society and the youth including students and young scientists and environmental professionals, and was organized according to the following format:
(i)    Introduction and science sessions
(ii)   Science-policy dialogue panel; and
(iii)   Interactive exchanges and discussions session with participants.

Highlights are summarized below:

• NASAC launched the booklet “Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience in Africa: Recommendations to Policy makers”.
• Participants recognized that science-policy dialogue is an important foundation for African Delegates in the context of the COP/UNFCCC negotiations.
• NASAC will lead the development of a network of African universities/laboratories and overseas counterparts with the view to empower existing African academies and educational institutions in the fields of climate change research.
• NASAC and IOC-UNESCO will promote “Oceans” as a key and unique component of climate change systems in Africa.
• NASAC and IOC-UNESCO together with the event partners intend to work together to organize an international science conference on Ocean and blue economy in Africa.
• The COP21 NASAC side-event at the Africa Pavilion called upon the African Union Commission to establish regional African research and network programmes like the European Commission Framework Programme (FP) that significantly enhanced networking and synergy among European scientific research and academic institutions and built modern European scientific, technology and innovations infrastructures in the fields of earth systems sciences including operational oceanography and meteorology, European forecasting centers and systems, European marine and climate policies towards developing European blue and green Economies.

Main recommendations emerging from the event included:

• Partnership between NASAC and AUC, as well as between NASAC and UNFCCC Secretariat will be pursued.
• A similar side-event will be organized for the COP22, which will be held in Morocco in 2016.

A detailed report will be available shortly.

For more information on NASAC, see the IAP directory HERE