GCA and AfDB Launch Initiative to Boost Climate Resilience in Central African Republic and Democratic Republic of Congo
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otterdam, the Netherlands, 13 March 2024 – The Global Center on Adaptation (GCA), in partnership with the African Development Bank (AfDB) through the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program (AAAP), today announced the launch of a major project aimed at sustainably improving the socio-economic living conditions and resilience of communities and ecosystem in the Oubangi transboundary river basin. The project will strengthe climate resilience and gender equality through enhanced climate resilience of planned water infrastructure to sustainably improve the socio-economic living conditions and resilience of communities and the ecosystem in the Ubangi’s cross-border basin.
GCA support to the $143.6 million AfDB project, the “PREDIRE Initiative,” will address critical climate vulnerabilities in the shared Oubangui Basin, significantly enhancing water security, sanitation, and agricultural productivity for over 2.4 million people, 51% of whom are women.
“Addressing climate risks is urgent, especially in fragile regions. Through our support to the PREDIRE Initiative, GCA is not only contributing to building climate-resilient infrastructure but also empowering communities—especially women and girls—to withstand climate shocks and secure a sustainable future,” said Professor Patrick V. Verkooijen, CEO of the Global Center on Adaptation.
Key components of the PREDIRE project include the construction and rehabilitation of drinking water facilities, sanitation systems, and irrigation infrastructure. These efforts are specifically designed to build knowledge, safeguard and ensure optimal development of the shared water resource in order to support the population’s sustainable social and economic development; develop resilient infrastructure to provide water security for the population, agriculture and agricultural product processing industries in order to improve regional integration and build the regional and national capacities of institutions involved in managing, safeguarding and developing transboundary water resources.
GCA is playing a pivotal role through comprehensive climate and gender vulnerability assessments, identifying hotspots of climate risk and gender inequality, and developing a targeted gender action plan. GCA is also assisting in the mobilization additional grant financing through the Global Environment Facility (GEF).
The PREDIRE Initiative will be implemented primarily through capacity-building measures aimed at empowering local catchment committees to effectively manage climate risks and implement community-based adaptation solutions. This underscores the commitment of GCA to transform the resilience landscape in Central Africa, ensuring sustainable and inclusive growth in a region significantly impacted by climate change. The project, launched in September 2024, will continue until 2029, marking a substantial step towards sustainable and equitable climate adaptation in Central Africa.
Notes to Editors
About the Global Center on Adaptation
The Global Center on Adaptation (GCA) is an international organization that promotes adaptation to the impacts of climate change. It works to climate-proof development by instigating policy reforms and influencing investments made by international financial institutions and the private sector. The goal is to bring climate adaptation to the forefront of the global fight against climate change and ensure that it remains prominent.
Founded in 2018, GCA embodies innovation in its approach to climate adaptation as well as in its physical presence. It operates from the largest floating office in the world, in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. GCA has a worldwide network of regional offices in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire; Dhaka, Bangladesh; and Beijing, China. The Center will open a new office in Nairobi, Kenya in 2025.
