January 27, 2026

Clean energy: a 50kWp solar mini grid plant in Plateau State, Nigeria

AS Africa’s climate ambitions collide with tightening fiscal realities, attention is shifting from commitments to delivery. While governments across the continent have adopted climate and development strategies, turning these plans into bankable, investable projects remains a critical challenge.

According to the Africa Climate Finance Tracking Report 2025, current climate finance flows meet only around 25 per cent of Sub-Saharan Africa’s annual climate financing needs, highlighting the scale of the delivery gap.

It is against this backdrop that Africa’s Green Economy Summit (AGES) will take place next month, February 24-27, in Cape Town.

Held under the theme From Ambition to Action: Scaling Investment in Africa’s Green and Blue Solutions, the summit will convene policymakers, investors, project developers and development partners to focus on what it takes to move climate projects from planning to implementation.

Africa continues to receive a disproportionately small share of global climate finance, even as climate-related shocks, energy constraints, and water stress intensify across the continent.

At the same time, declining concessional flows and rising competition for private capital are accelerating a shift toward investment-led approaches and the development of stronger, more resilient project pipelines.

“Global climate discussions often focus on commitments and coordination, but delivery ultimately depends on where capital decisions are made,” said Emmanuelle Nicholls, Group Director – Green Economy at VUKA Group.

“Africa’s Green Economy Summit creates a space to examine which projects, in which markets, are ready to meet today’s financial realities and move toward implementation.”

Unlike global climate forums which centre on pledges and declarations, AGES 2026 will focus on where capital is flowing, where it is stalling and which projects are realistically positioned to reach financial close.

The programme will examine the practical conditions required for delivery, including risk allocation, regulatory certainty and investment readiness across key green and blue economy sectors.

“The real constraint is not a lack of projects, but a lack of financing structures that can meet projects where they are,” said Teboho Makhabane, Head of ESG and Impact at Sanlam Investments.

“Platforms like AGES matter because they bring the right partners together to design innovative finance solutions that can unlock viable projects, deliver real economic impact and generate sustainable returns.”

Reinforcing its continental mandate, the African Union will return as host organisation of AGES 2026.

The summit will also convene the AU–Green Recovery Action Plan (AU-GRAP) Grand Finale Roundtable, marking the conclusion of Phase I of the programme.

The session will reflect on the outcomes of five Green Investment Roundtables and set the direction for Phase II implementation, positioning AU-GRAP as a continental mechanism for mobilising climate and nature finance.

“We can only close the climate and nature finance gap if we understand the real movements of capital, both the momentum and the constraints,” said Barbara Buchner, Global Managing Director, Climate Policy Initiative.

“There is progress, but it is uneven, and finance is still not reaching the regions and sectors that need it most.

“An objective view of where global climate finance is heading and how it aligns with broader development goals is essential for unlocking investment at scale and helping Africa effectively deploy capital to meet its ambitious goals.”

A central feature of the summit is its Investment Pitch and Showcase, which will present a curated pipeline of over 50 vetted African projects spanning renewable energy, battery storage, climate-resilient water systems, electric mobility, waste-to-value solutions, circular manufacturing, climate-smart agriculture and resilience technologies.

By focusing on where capital meets implementation, Africa’s Green Economy Summit 2026 aims to accelerate a more grounded, investment-ready phase of climate action across the continent.