Why Africa Needs a Centralized Sustainability Data Tracking System to Advance Climate Action
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Why Africa Needs a Centralized Sustainability Data Tracking System to Advance Climate Action
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By Saniya Fatima
Feb 2025
Africa stands at a pivotal moment in its climate journey, with bold commitments outlined in National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) and Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) to drive resilience and emissions reduction. Yet, these ambitious blueprints remain hindered by a fundamental challenge—the lack of a unified, continent-wide system to track, measure, and report climate progress. Without reliable data infrastructure, African nations struggle to secure climate finance, monitor adaptation efforts, and translate policies and plans into measurable impact. The result? Underfunded, underreported, and under-implemented climate actions that leave the continent vulnerable to escalating climate threats. To bridge this gap, Africa must invest in a pan-African sustainability data system that enhances transparency, strengthens institutional capacity, and unlocks the full potential of NAPs and NDCs. Without it, climate ambitions will remain just that—ambitions.
The High Cost of Fragmented Climate Data in Africa
Robust Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) systems are essential for securing climate finance and tracking progress on NAPs and NDCs. They provide the transparency and accountability that investors, donors, and multilateral funds require. However, across Africa, MRV systems remain fragmented, underfunded, and ineffective, preventing climate action from reaching its full potential.
Despite efforts to establish national climate monitoring frameworks, progress is inconsistent. South Africa’s MRV system, designed to track emissions and adaptation progress, has remained in Phase 1 since 2009, while Mozambique lacks the technical capacity to operationalize its MRV framework and comply with global reporting standards. Namibia, meanwhile, relies on outsourced, ad hoc assessments, a costly and unsustainable approach that weakens institutional learning.
This lack of technical capacity is closely tied to Africa’s climate finance gap. Many countries struggle to invest in capacity-building initiatives at both national and organizational levels due to limited funding. International climate finance flows remain heavily concentrated in a small number of African countries—the top 10 recipients receive 46% of total funding, while the 10 most climate-vulnerable African nations receive only 11% . This unequal distribution further widens the financing gap, leaving many high-risk regions without the resources needed to strengthen MRV systems and implement climate strategies effectively.
To address these disparities, a harmonized, pan-African MRV system is essential. A centralized approach would reduce duplication of efforts, enable transparent sharing of financial needs, and enhance comparability across NDCs, ultimately improving regional coordination and efficiency. With Africa requiring approximately $2.8 trillion from 2020 to 2030 to meet its NDCs, current climate finance flows cover only 23% of these annual needs. Without improved data infrastructure, African nations will continue to struggle to attract and allocate climate finance efficiently, slowing progress toward climate resilience.
A Circuitous Challenge: Why Data-Driven NAPs & NDCs Matter for Climate Finance
One of the biggest consequences of Africa’s weak MRV systems is the struggle to mobilize international climate finance. Without a clear, quantifiable breakdown of their adaptation and mitigation needs, African countries fail to attract investors and donors who demand measurable outcomes and financial accountability.
Currently, African NDCs:
Lack quantifiable adaptation goals, often describing them in broad, qualitative terms without specifying the number of projects, targeted beneficiaries, or financial requirements.
Do not distinguish between adaptation and mitigation finance needs, making it difficult for donors to assess the funding landscape.
Fail to clarify domestic resource mobilization, with only 13% of African NDCs mentioning local funding sources—and even then, failing to specify whether these are public or private funds.
This ambiguity makes it nearly impossible to effectively communicate Africa’s financial needs to entities such as the financiers such as Green Climate Fund (GCF) and private investors. A data-backed, well-structured MRV system would not only increase credibility with donors but also ensure that climate finance is efficiently tracked and utilized, reducing risks of fund misallocation. However, this is a circuitous challenge with inadequate funding limiting capacity building and data collection, which in turn leads to inability to access climate finance.
The Urgent Need for a Centralized Pan-African Sustainability Data System
To break the cycle of fragmented data tracking and inefficient financing, Africa must invest in a continent-wide Sustainability Data System that strengthens Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) and Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) capabilities. A centralized system would enable governments to institutionalize data collection rather than rely on costly, outsourced approaches, ensuring evidence-based climate finance mobilization, greater transparency, and more efficient use of funds. By supporting Results-Based Finance (RBF) models, this system would enhance investor confidence and donor engagement, linking climate finance to measurable adaptation and mitigation outcomes.
Beyond finance, a shared data infrastructure would foster regional coordination and knowledge-sharing, allowing African nations to compare progress, exchange best practices, and align policies. Climate stakeholders, including the Africa NDC Hub, International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), and global development agencies, must prioritize this initiative, as a harmonized MRV system would not only streamline climate reporting but also enhance policy alignment, increase access to international funding, and strengthen climate resilience—ensuring that adaptation efforts reach the most vulnerable communities.
To turn Africa’s climate ambitions into reality, the Pan-African Sustainability Data System must be strategically operated and managed. The system would integrate both secondary and primary data sources to ensure comprehensive and efficient climate tracking. Secondary data would come from existing government databases, national statistics, industry-specific indexes, and climate reports, reducing duplication of efforts. Where secondary data is unavailable, primary data collection would involve direct coordination with private sector actors and government agencies, ensuring real-time, accurate reporting. This approach would enable African businesses to track and align their sustainability efforts, carbon emissions, and environmental impact with national climate targets.
For long-term sustainability, the system must be anchored within existing pan-African institutions with strong oversight mechanisms. The African Development Bank (AfDB) and the African Union (AU) could provide strategic leadership, financial support, and regional coordination, while an independent secretariat would oversee data governance, collection processes, and compliance standards, ensuring credibility and preventing politicization. Additionally, cross-sector partnerships with research institutions, development agencies, and global climate finance organizations would further improve efficiency and alignment with international standards.
Without a harmonized, continent-wide sustainability data system, African nations will continue to struggle with securing climate finance, measuring progress, and coordinating regional efforts. The climate finance gap will only widen if data inefficiencies persist. Investing in a Pan-African Sustainability Data System would reduce costs, improve institutional capacity, and empower African nations to independently track climate progress. For Africa, this is not just about climate accountability—it is a strategic necessity for sustainable development, economic growth, and long-term climate resilience.
Saniya Fatima is an Associate at Botho Emerging Markets Group