GCA’s CEO welcomes high-level delegation from University of Nairobi to the Netherlands for a strategic dialogue on scaling up adaptation in Kenya
T
he Netherlands, 20 December 2023 – The CEO of the Global Center on Adaptation (GCA) and Distinguished Chair of the Wangari Maathai Institute for Peace and Environmental Studies at the University of Nairobi Prof. Dr. Patrick Verkooijen welcomed a high-level delegation from the University of Nairobi led by Vice Chancellor Prof. Stephen Kiama and Chair of the Council Prof. Amukowa Anangwe for an official visit to GCA’s floating office in Rotterdam on 18 December 2023 for a strategic dialogue on scaling up adaptation in Kenya as a model for the rest of the continent. The visit is a follow-up to the COP28 Adaptation Finance Summit for Africa co-convened by H.E. William S. Ruto, President of Kenya and GCA Board Member, and Prof. Dr. Verkooijen.
Delivering on the Partnership Agreement
In July 2022, GCA and the University of Nairobi signed a partnership agreement to join forces on scaling up adaptation for climate resilience in Kenya and across East Africa through the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program (AAAP). During the visit, Prof. Dr. Verkooijen and the University of Nairobi’s leadership formulated a roadmap to build on the success of the partnership and further accelerate the implementation of adaptation solutions on the ground.
Prof. Dr. Patrick Verkooijen, Ban Ki-moon Chair of Climate Adaptation Governance at the University of Groningen and Distinguished Chair at the University of Nairobi Wangari Maathai Institute for Peace and Environmental Studies, said: “Our partnership with the University of Nairobi is vital for shaping the adaptation agenda across Africa. The program of expert knowledge we are developing together is supporting the Government of Kenya, multilateral and international organizations and the private sector, to generate the research, knowledge, solutions, and finance required to address the impacts of climate change in Kenya and across the entire continent.”
Prof. Amukowa Anangwe, Chair of the Council, University of Nairobi, said: “Climate change is an existential threat to businesses and communities across Africa. The continent has been losing 5 to 15 percent of its per capita GDP growth every year because of climate change. With this roadmap we are charting a future where climate adaptation can build a more resilient and prosperous future for Africa – it’s estimated that the climate adaptation market could be worth $2 trillion a year globally by 2026. By providing the right opportunities for our students, we are able to tap into their energy and ideas to create more employment and wealth across the continent.”
Prof. Stephen Kiama, Vice Chancellor, University of Nairobi, said: “Young people hold the key to unlocking Africa’s economic potential. With the youngest population in the world – almost 60 percent are aged under 25 – Africa is well placed to grow. Our partnership with the Global Center on Adaptation gives our faculty and students the knowledge and skills they need in climate adaptation to make a positive impact through their work to safeguard the future of our continent.”
Empowering One Million Young People to Lead on Adaptation
GCA and the University of Nairobi are collaborating on training one million young people from Kenya’s Green Army on adaptation and leadership. The training program is a flagship presidential initiative under the leadership of H.E. William Samoei Ruto, President of the Republic of Kenya, and Hon. Ababu Namwamba, Cabinet Secretary of Youth Affairs, Sports, and the Creative Economy.
Based on GCA’s Toolkit for Youth on Adaptation and Leadership, the training will be delivered through ‘Youth Adaptation Academies’, designed through a partnership between GCA, University of Nairobi, and Kenya’s Ministry of Youth Affairs, Sports and the Arts. The first two Youth Adaptation Academies are planned for May and October 2024 in Kenya. During the closing ceremony of the YouthConnekt Africa Summit in Nairobi, the Cabinet Secretary announced plans to expand the training program to a pan-African scale by extending invitations to Ministers of Youth from across the continent to replicate the program.
Shaping Kenya’s Resilient Future
Under the University of Nairobi’s leadership, strong progress is being made on developing Kenya’s National Investment Roadmap for Resilient Infrastructure, which is designed to inform national-level investment plans by pinpointing areas with the highest climate change risks and prioritizing the most effective adaptation measures. It is expected that the National Investment Roadmap will be launched in the second half of 2024, together with the government of Kenya.
GCA and the University of Nairobi are also collaborating on mainstreaming adaptation expertise into the infrastructure projects of international finance institutions, such as the African Development Bank. To ensure that the infrastructure being built and upgraded today are climate-proof, the University supports the identification and cost-benefit appraisal of adaptation and resilience options for the technical design, operation, and maintenance of critical infrastructure assets in Kenya.
Elevating Africa’s Adaptation Changemakers
As part of the AAAP strategy to embed technical capacity within institutions in Africa, GCA co-organized the ‘Climate Adaptation Changemakers School’ together with the University of Nairobi, Université Chiekh Anta Diop de Dakar, and University of Groningen. The next Changemakers School will be hosted by the University of Nairobi in February 2024, building upon the success of the first Changemakers School, which took place in Groningen, the Netherlands in October 2023.
Following the Regional Forum on the Future of Resilient Food Systems in Africa held at the University of Nairobi in January 2023, a Capacity Building session on ‘Advancing Climate Adaptation Agriculture’ is also planned for March 2024, to be co-convened by GCA, the Department of Agriculture, the University of Nairobi and the African Development Bank.
Forging a New Partnership with the University of Groningen
On 19 December 2023, Prof. Dr. Verkooijen and the University of Nairobi delegation met with Prof. Dr. Jouke de Vries, President President of the Board of the University of Groningen, which hosts GCA’s Research for Impact Office. Prof. Dr. Verkooijen is also the Ban Ki-moon Chair of the University of Groningen’s Climate Adaptation Governance Programme. During their visit, the delegation discussed a new collaboration on a double doctorate program on climate adaptation governance.
About the University of Nairobi
The University of Nairobi is a pioneer institution of university education in Kenya and the region. The only institution of higher learning in Kenya for a long time, the University of Nairobi responded to the national, regional, and Africa’s high level manpower training needs by developing and evolving strong, diversified academic programmes and specializations in sciences, applied sciences, technology, humanities, social sciences and the arts. To date, the range of programmes offered number approximately two hundred. The university is proud of its distinguished record of achievements in teaching, research, development and consultancy while strategizing for a greater future as the centre of academic, research and professional excellence.
About the Global Center on Adaptation
The Global Center on Adaptation (GCA) is an international organization that works as a solutions broker to accelerate action and support for adaptation solutions, from the international to the local, in partnership with the public and private sectors. Founded in 2018, GCA operates from the largest floating office in the world, located in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. GCA has a worldwide network of regional offices in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire; Dhaka, Bangladesh, and Beijing, China, and is opening a new office in Nairobi, Kenya in 2025.
