This week, on January 14, 2021, the United Nations Environment Programme released its annual Adaptation Gap Report which showed that if we increase ambition towards the safer 2°C goal, the losses in annual economic growth due to climate change, will be limited to 1.6 per cent. But if we do not, these losses will increase to 2.2 per cent for the unsafe 3.2°C trajectory. This report called for investments in nature-based solutions to drive climate change adaptation. According to this report, a $1.8 trillion investment in adaptation measures would bring a return of $7.1 trillion in avoided costs and other benefits.
About a month ago, UNEP also released the Emissions Gap Report which showed efforts to deal with global warming remain inadequate. As a result, the globe is still heading for an above 3.2°C warming this century — way above the 1.5℃ threshold that is critical to forestall the worst impacts of the changing climate. However, this report offers hope of a "green pandemic recovery" which implies a re-prioritisation of fiscal investments that lower emission but drive the much-needed socioeconomic benefits which could cut emissions by up to 25 per cent by 2030 and bring the world closer to the safe 2°C goal of the Paris Agreement. A 1.5℃ warming scenario is the threshold set by the Paris Agreement as best insurance against an unravelling climate change impacts projected to spell doom for Africa. Key among them, a devastating 75 per cent shrinkage of economic productivity in developing countries - most of which are in Africa.
