African cities must rise to meet the climate crisis
African cities bear the brunt of climate impacts, and cannot afford to wait for international solidarity that may never come.
Multilateral climate action and funding faced a major setback last week when the United States (US) announced its withdrawal from the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and 65 other international bodies.
It had already withdrawn from the Paris Agreement and Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage (FRLD) in March 2025, and did not send a delegation to last year’s UN Climate Change Conference in Brazil (COP30).
The US has historically contributed about 20% of the UNFCCC’s core budget. Last week’s memo said the country would withdraw membership, participation and funding ‘to the extent permitted by law.’
This further entrenches Trump’s ‘America First’ approach that deepens the shift towards US economic and security interests over traditional multilateral aid and diplomacy. Together with other Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries’ shifts towards higher defence spending and lower development budgets, this could frustrate hard-earned climate justice progress.
Population density, economic activity and being located near oceans or rivers make cities vulnerable
African cities bear the brunt of climate impacts and must act swiftly and strategically to build resilience for population and economic hubs. Local and national governments cannot afford to wait for international solidarity that may not materialise. Effective action will depend on cities’ governance, capacity, legal frameworks, financial mechanisms and advocacy.
Nearly 80% of global gross domestic product (GDP) and over half the world’s population (56%) are concentrated in urban areas, which are responsible for up to 70% of global emissions.
Population density, economic activity and their geographic locations near oceans or rivers make cities vulnerable to climate impacts. These impacts cause direct and compounding effects where people, infrastructure, economic assets and utilities are most concentrated.
The cascading effects on housing, food security, ecosystems, health, education and livelihoods disproportionately affect marginalised groups, including women, children, the elderly, migrants and the urban poor.
Cities are key drivers of economic prosperity and development, and urbanisation offers substantial opportunities if managed well – but poses serious risks if not. Most African cities (83%) are rated at ‘extreme risk’ for climate change vulnerability.
Most African cities (83%) are rated at ‘extreme risk’ for climate change vulnerability
Africa has an urban annual growth rate of about 3.5% and 86 of the world’s 100 fastest-growing cities. The percentage of people living in Africa’s urban areas has grown from 15% in the 1960s to 43% in 2018 and is expected to pass 50% by 2030.
Over 265 million people in sub-Saharan Africa live in informal settlements, and the proportion (currently 53%) of informality is growing at the fastest rate worldwide. The unplanned nature of informal settlements heightens their vulnerability: inadequate structures often located on unwanted land not intended for residential use.
Vulnerability is compounded by poverty, overcrowding and poor infrastructure and services. Climate shocks push people further into poverty and negative coping strategies, such as selling assets, reducing food, degrading environmental resources, removing children from school or moving.
Local governments are closest to the highest number of people, and should lead transformative actions. However, cities are not parties to international conventions and must be creative in influencing and accessing relevant instruments.
‘Loss and damage’ refers to climate impacts that are beyond adaptation. In 2025, developing countries’ loss and damage needs were estimated at between US$128 billion and US$937 billion.
Cities aren’t party to international conventions and must be creative in accessing relevant support
Progress is being made within the UNFCCC through three loss and damage entities. These are the Warsaw International Mechanism, which coordinates policy and knowledge; the Santiago Network, connecting countries and communities with technical assistance; and the FRLD, which provides funding. The FRLD addresses gaps in climate financing systems that are largely inaccessible to vulnerable communities.
As of November 2025, only US$817 million had been pledged to the FRLD, and less than half had been paid in. It launched the first call for funding at COP30 in Brazil and is accepting grant requests to strengthen national responses to climate-induced disasters until June 2026. At least 50% must go to small island developing states and least developed countries.
Much is yet to be determined about what the FRLD will cover, whether it will have a window reserved for urban impacts and how losses and damages will ultimately be calculated. Calculations are typically based on national GDP losses, even though cities generate about 80% of GDP.
Robust tools to assess and predict urban loss and damage are not yet available. There is a growing call for a ‘science of loss’ to inform more accurate policies, but it has largely overlooked cities.
Despite these unknowns – or because of them – African cities cannot wait for clarity or leadership from afar to act on loss and damage. A recent Institute for Security Studies policy brief recommends opportunities for action by city and national governments.
It suggests cities conduct vulnerability assessments that include economic and non-economic loss and damage, develop clear loss and damage messages, and increase advocacy. It recommends they maximise city-to-city solidarity internationally and within countries, and engage more actively with existing city networks to influence high-level decisions.
National governments should build multi-level loss and damage governance capacity. Agendas should be integrated vertically between government levels and horizontally with other stakeholders. They also need to include urban loss and damage in Nationally Determined Contributions and National Adaptation Plans to improve planning, financing and implementation.
For more on this topic, read the ISS policy brief: ‘African cities are key to dealing with climate loss and damage’.
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