The Capacity-building Knowledge to Action Day for the Africa region aimed to contribute to strengthening the engagement of universities and research institutions, in building capacity for the preparation and implementation of national adaptation plans (NAPs) and nationally determined contributions (NDCs).

Due to the postponement of the Africa Climate Week 2020, where the event was originally planned to be held, the workshop was organized as a virtual event on 24 September 2020.

Objectives

The specific objectives of the Capacity-building Knowledge to Action Day for the Africa Region were to:

• Increase the understanding of
  • capacity-building gaps and needs of developing countries when it comes to boosting ambition and accelerating action to prepare and implement NDCs and NAPs
  • the role local and national universities and research institutions can play in building and retaining the required capacity;
• Foster a dialogue and facilitate the sharing of experiences and good practices related to strengthening capacity for preparing and/or implementing NAPs and NDCs;
• Encourage a discussion on how to interpret and match knowledge needs when enhancing implementation and increasing ambition of NDCs and NAPs, aiming to translate these into researchable questions;
• Jointly prioritize the capacity-building gaps with a view to discussing and identifying ways to collaborate and bridge these gaps.

A joint report highlighting the outcomes and recommendations from all Capacity-building Knowledge to Action Days organized in 2019 and 2020 was produced and is available on the main event series page.

Partners

The organizing partners of the Capacity-building Knowledge to Action Day for the Africa region represented a rich diversity of committed national, regional and international institutions that are working in the Africa region, aimed at raising climate ambition through collective efforts, action, and exchange of knowledge.

Interpretation

Although the main event language is English, simultaneous interpretation was provided in French during plenary sessions. For the breakout session there were English and French speaking groups.

Other Knowledge to Action events

The Capacity-building Knowledge to Action Day for the Africa region was the final event in a series of three regional workshops. The previous two regional Capacity-building Knowledge to Action Days were held during the Latin America and Caribbean and Asia-Pacific Climate Weeks in August and September 2019 respectively.

In addition, a full-day Capacity-building Knowledge to Action Day took place during the Capacity-building Hub hosted by the PCCB at COP 25, This focused on key topics including a review of the first two Capacity-building Knowledge to Action Days, the importance of indigenous knowledge, collaborative online platforms and the role of the private sector in climate-related knowledge generation.