AAI Brings Canada and Africa Together on Adaptation Finance at SB64

On the sidelines of the UN climate talks in Bonn, AAI convened a panel on diversifying adaptation finance, with Canada's Chief Negotiator at the table.

The Africa Adaptation Initiative (AAI) convened a high-level panel on adaptation finance on the sidelines of the 64th session of the UNFCCC Subsidiary Bodies (SB64) in Bonn, Germany. Canada and African partners used the session to reaffirm a shared commitment: strengthen the partnerships that finance adaptation, and move more resources to the communities that need them.

The panel looked at new ways to finance adaptation across Africa, with one focus throughout. How to channel more support to the communities most exposed to climate risk.

Canada sat at the centre of the discussion. Canada's Chief Negotiator, Jeanne-Marie Huddleston of Environment and Climate Change Canada, joined AAI Coordinator and Green Climate Fund co-chair Ambassador Seyni Nafo on the panel, alongside Mariam Allam of Egypt and climate policy expert Eddy Pérez. Speakers set out how governments, development institutions, civil society, and international partners can work together. The aim is clear: widen access to adaptation finance, and move resilience projects faster from plan to delivery.

One point came back through the room. African communities facing extreme weather, food insecurity, and environmental degradation need more funding, from more sources, and they need it now. Diversified financing partnerships, the panel argued, offer a way to meet that need.

"We are grateful for this panel at the UNFCCC SB64 session showcasing how AAI is building innovative partnerships in Africa," Ambassador Nafo said. "I want to thank Canada's Chief Negotiator Jeanne-Marie Huddleston from Environment and Climate Change Canada, Mariam Allam from Egypt, Imen Meliane and Eddy Perez for making this panel such a successful event. Thanks also to everyone who came to share their views on the importance of diversifying adaptation finance partnerships."

The session also recognised the work of the Adaptation Fund, Climate Action Network Canada, and the Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA) on adaptation across the continent.

The panel built on recent momentum. AAI's engagement with Canada in Bonn follows a series of meetings in Ottawa earlier in June, where Ambassador Nafo met Canadian ministers, parliamentarians, and civil society. Together, the two moments show how stronger international partnerships can mobilise climate finance and carry adaptation priorities forward.

SB64 keeps adaptation finance at the centre of the negotiations ahead of the next round of global climate talks. For developing countries, the issue remains pressing. For AAI and its Canadian partners, the direction is set. Turn shared ambition into finance that reaches African communities.