News Update: Africa Climate Summit, 100% geothermal-powered data center, EV-progress and more
Industry and Investment News
Hi Exseede-Community,
welcome to our news roundup!
This week, Kenya took the spotlight in the world of sustainable climate financing, hosting Africa Climate Week and the inaugural Africa Climate Summit in Nairobi. We've got a special section to sum it all up for you.
Other news highlights include:
Exciting partnerships speeding up electric vehicle production and adoption in Kenya and Rwanda
Construction started of Africa's first data center powered entirely by geothermal energy.
Africa's first carbon credits trading platform launches with a groundbreaking 2-million-credits deal.
Special: First Africa Climate Summit
The Africa Climate Summit aimed to unite African nations with a common stance for COP28 (scheduled for December this year in Dubai) and to send a strong message to potential investors. Africa, despite minimal greenhouse gas emissions, is severely impacted by climate change and debt burdens, obstructing economic growth.
African leaders emphasized the continent’s immense potential for leadership in clean energy and environmental stewardship, emphasizing that developed countries should invest in Africa's clean energy transition instead of merely providing aid during disasters.
“In Africa, we can be a green industrial hub that helps other regions achieve their net zero strategies by 2050. Unlocking the renewable energy resources that we have in our continent is not only good for Africa, it is good for the rest of the world.” - William Ruto, President of Kenya
One key point of discussion was the shortage of adequate financing for climate-related projects, a major source of contention between wealthier and less developed nations.
During the summit, funding pledges for the continent reached a significant $23 billion. Notably, the UAE pledged a substantial $4.5 billion for clean energy projects. However, it remains unclear how much of this represents firm commitments.
“Even before today, there were announcements made on delivering climate finance to the Global South to a tune of $100bn per year – that was 14 years ago. So I think what needs to be done is to translating those commitments and announcements to tangible actions on the ground.” - Kevin Juma, of The Nature Conservancy, told Al Jazeera
The summit concluded with the Nairobi Declaration, proposing measures such as a global carbon tax on fossil fuels, financial institution reforms, an almost sixfold expansion of renewable energy by 2030, debt pauses during climate disasters and a 10-year interest payment grace period.
No country should ever have to choose between development aspirations and climate action - Nairobi Declaration
It's worth mentioning that some African leaders didn’t attend the summit, including those from larger economies like Nigeria, South Africa, Ethiopia, and Egypt. Nigeria is one of Africa’s major oil producers, and South Africa relies on coal for more than 80% of its power.
Investment news
😍 Good news:
Black Ostrich Ventures Launches $20M Fund to Back African Startups Outside of the ‘Big Four’ (Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya and Egypt)
Tanzania's CRDB Bank launched Sub-Saharan Africa's largest $300mn green bond with a 10.25% interest rate for sustainable investment.
Catalyst Fund, a pre-seed venture capital fund focused on climate resilience innovation in Africa, has successfully closed the first phase of its $40 million fund, with over 20% already committed.
The IFC invested a record $11.5 billion in the fiscal year 2023 into Africa’s energy transition, green manufacturing, intra-Africa trade, small businesses, local food production, and digital connectivity.
The EU is exploring opportunities to support sustainable aviation fuel projects in Africa through its Global Gateway infrastructure fund (300bn EUR, 50% allocation to Africa)
👎 Less good news:
Africa requires nearly ten times its current climate adaptation funding according to the Global Center on Adaptation, as current flows of about $11 billion a year in 2020 fall significantly short of the $100 billion needed.
In the face of the global climate crisis: Why rich nations must invest in Africa's climate adaptation, as neglecting this responsibility will ultimately harm the global economy and supply chains.
Industry News:
🥑 Agriculture/ Food systems:
South Africa: MycoSure aims to establish South Africa's presence in the alternative protein industry by utilizing biomass fermentation to cultivate protein-rich mycelium.
Rwanda: Minister of Agriculture and Animal Resources, Ildephonse Musafiri, outlines investment opportunities within the country's agriculture sector, e.g., enhancing milk and cheese processing capacity, irrigation and mechanization in agriculture, food processing and storage.
🌳 Ecosystems
Kenya: Kenya has passed a law to regulate carbon markets and establish a carbon credit trading registry with mandatory environmental sustainability reporting for companies as per global Sustainability Reporting Standards starting on Sept 5.
Kenya: Launch of CYNK, Africa's first carbon credits trading platform to connect investors and buyers of carbon credits via blockchain. First landmark trade of 2 million credits executed.
💡 Energy and infrastructure
UN Chief Guterres calls on Africa to become renewable energy superpower emphasizing the continent’s abundant resources such as solar, wind, and hydropower, along with 30% of the world's mineral reserves essential for renewable energy technologies.
🚕 Mobility and transport systems
Kenya: Uber has launched its electric motorbike service, called Electric Boda, in Kenya, marking its first electric bike service in Africa.
Kenya: The Kenyan government partnered with Spiro, a leading African electric motorbike manufacturer and clean energy provider, to deploy electric bodas (motorbikes) throughout Kenya, with plans for thousands of battery charging and swapping stations and a local manufacturing base.
Kenya: Mobius Motors has partnered with Stima and One Electric to accelerate the deployment of electric motorcycles in Kenya by locally assembling One Electric motorcycles
Rwanda: Kenyan tech startup eWaka is entering Rwanda's electric vehicle market with plans to deploy 1,000 electric bicycles and scooters by 2024.
Nigeria: Possible EVS opened first public electric vehicle charging station to provide convenient and fast charging for electric buses, taxis, and private vehicles. The plan is to deploy 10,000 stations across Nigeria within five years.
🏭 Industrialisation
Chinese President Xi Jinping announced initiatives to support Africa's industrialization and agricultural modernization emphasizing China's commitment to grow Africa's manufacturing sector and diversify its economy.
Botswana: Stride of Success Ltd inaugurates paper recycling and manufacturing plant creating 200 jobs, emphasizing the government's commitment to developing a strong waste recycling industry.
💻 Digital transformation
Kenya: Kenya has initiated the construction of the Olkaria EcoCLOUD Data Centre, Africa's first data center powered entirely by renewable geothermal energy, aiming to lead in sustainability and digitalization while attracting global tech giants like Google and Amazon Web Services.
Kenya: Amini CEO Kate Kallot discusses her vision for the satellite startup, emphasizing its Africa-centric approach, and its plans to provide granular environmental data for various sectors beyond agriculture.
Nigeria: Itana has secured $2 million in pre-seed funding to create Africa's first Digital Free Zone, facilitating an online jurisdiction for global digital and service businesses to operate and scale easily across the continent.
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Thanks for reading,
Carolin