Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, 27 November 2025: Climate change, of which Africa is the main victim, is exacerbating serious and growing security threats across the continent, including terrorism, armed conflict and inter-communal conflict, endangering stability and ultimately endangering the very survival of its peoples.
Nine of the 10 countries most vulnerable to climate change are in Africa. The continent also accounts for 12 of the 19 countries most affected by armed conflict, and 9 of the 20 countries experience institutional and social weaknesses.
To support efforts to address the link between climate and peace and security, the United Nations Office for the African Union, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa and the African Union Commission convened a roundtable discussion on 14 November 2025 in Belem, Brazil, host city of the United Nations Conference on Climate Change (COP30). Held under the theme “Adapting to Stability – Growing Partnerships for Peace and Climate Resilience in Africa,” the discussion considered how the continent can strengthen cooperation and strengthen resilience in the face of rising climate-related security risks.
This side event brought together representatives from international organizations, development finance institutions, civil society, and other development stakeholders to create a platform for shared analysis and collaboration.
“Climate change is increasing conflict and fragility on the continent,” explains Dr. Al Hamundou Dorsouma, Manager of Climate Change and Green Growth at the African Development Bank Group. “In 2024 alone, climate disasters will cause 9.8 million new internally displaced persons in Africa, highlighting how deeply linked climate risks and forced displacement are.”
“Reduced and erratic rainfall and water scarcity are changing the seasonal migration patterns of Africa’s pastoralist communities and increasing competition between pastoralist groups and between pastoralist and agricultural communities. This has led to recurring conflicts in nearly every region of the continent, from Ethiopia to Darfur, Kenya to Nigeria and across the Sahel.”
“Without peace, there can be no climate project implementation. Without peace, we cannot fight climate change,” said Nazanin Moshiri, Senior Advisor for Climate, Peace and Strategic Partnerships at the Berghof Foundation.
“As the continent’s leading development finance institution, the African Development Bank Group is committed to working with African countries and development partners to build resilience to climate change while addressing the root causes of conflict and fragility,” Mr. Dorsouma continued. “We encourage our colleagues and partners here today, and those following us online, to focus our efforts on financing. Investing in early warning systems and adaptation is not only a humanitarian imperative, but also an economically sensible and sustainable solution. Every dollar invested in climate adaptation and resilience generates an ROI of between $2 and $10.”
Abdi Fidal, Director of the Center for Climate Forecasting and Applications at the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), said it is currently difficult to disentangle the link between security and climate, as vulnerable regions have not benefited from climate finance.
Mr. Dorsouma further explained to attendees that the African Development Bank’s response to the climate-peace-security nexus is threefold. First, there is the Transition Support Facility (TSF), a strategy to address vulnerabilities and build resilience and a concessional financing mechanism for 37 low-income African countries that are enduring fragility. The World Bank has also established a Climate Change and Green Growth Strategic Framework for 2030, placing the climate-peace-security nexus at the core of Africa’s climate change adaptation priorities.
The pan-African development agency recently introduced business design innovations that take into account aspects such as fragility and climate vulnerability. Most importantly, financial resources for adaptation and resilience have also increased. In 2023, the World Bank Group launched the Climate Action Window (https://apo-opa.co/4roMgzN) under the auspices of the African Development Fund, with approximately $450 million in funding available. In one year of work, Window has already supported 59 climate action projects in African countries facing fragility and climate vulnerability, of which 41 focus on adaptation and 18 on mitigation, with a cumulative total of $386 million, said Dorsouma, who listed other measures implemented to address climate and security issues.
“Building resilience while addressing fragility requires joint action across a wide range of sectors, from humanitarian assistance to peacebuilding, but most importantly, a focus on climate-resilient development efforts. This is the only guarantee to protect the development gains already achieved and to prevent climate change from continuing to exacerbate vulnerabilities and undermine efforts to achieve sustainable development,” said World Bank Group representatives. “I call on each of us to step up our efforts to build a more climate-resilient and peaceful Africa.”
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