VIENNA, 20 November - Africa has been and remains the top focus of UNIDO’s efforts to accelerate inclusive and sustainable industrial development.

At the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) which has just finished its work in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, UNIDO advocated that the full implementation of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and its Paris Agreement will not be possible without the transformation of industry – from the major polluter to a leading provider of innovative climate solutions.

Africa is one of the most vulnerable continents in the world, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Temperature increase, heat waves, extensive floods, tropical cyclones, prolonged droughts, and sea level rise resulting in loss of lives, property damage, and population displacement, undermine Africa’s ability to achieve its commitments to meet the targets of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the African Union Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want. The Sharm el-Sheikh Implementation Plan adopted at COP 27 paves the way for the African leaders to formulate sound climate and industrialization policies in line with the vision of African Union’s Agenda 2063 -The Africa We Want.   

The African Union’s Extraordinary Summit on Industrialization and Economic Diversification and the Extraordinary Session on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is being held in Niamey, Niger, from 20 to 25 November 2022 during the Africa Industrialization Week.

The impact of Covid-19 pandemic, energy and food crises facing the world have had a disproportionate effect on the African countries and exposed their vulnerability—especially in agriculture, pharmaceuticals and food sectors. There is an urgent need to promote resilient regional and continental value chains. The coming info force of AfCFTA opens up enormous opportunities for intra-African trade — creating employment, promoting standardization, skill development and integration into the global value chains — putting Africa on the right trajectory to sustainable development. 

In accordance with the United Nations General Assembly’s resolution, passed in 2016, UNIDO is tasked with leading the implementation of the Third Industrial Development Decade for Africa in cooperation with the African Union and other partners.

In this capacity UNIDO has co-organized and substantially contributed to the Africa Industrialization Summit. It will be convening numerous events on agriculture and agri-businesses, value chains, the Common African AgroParks Programme, green industry development, data and statistics, digitalization for sustainable industrialization, South-South and triangular industrial cooperation, among others.

For more information please visit:  https://www.unido.org/AIW2022