Innovative climate finance to drive Africa's nature-based solutions agenda - Jinapor

Member of Parliament for Damongo and Global Lead for the Africa Centre for Nature-Based Climate Action (AC4NCA), Samuel Jinapor, has called on African governments and development partners to move beyond traditional climate financing models and adopt innovative financial mechanisms to scale up nature-based solutions (NbS) across the continent.

Speaking during a high-level panel discussion at the 2026 Scientific Day of Renaissance for Africa, Jinapor said Africa’s vast natural capital can only be fully unlocked through diversified and scalable financing instruments.

The event, held under the auspices of the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ghana, Professor Nana Aba Appiah Amfo, was organised in partnership with AC4NCA. It brought together policymakers, researchers, development practitioners and environmental experts to discuss biodiversity conservation and the role of nature-based climate action in Africa’s development agenda.

Jinapor stressed that relying solely on conventional public funding would be insufficient to meet Africa’s growing climate adaptation and ecosystem restoration needs.

“Africa must move beyond relying solely on traditional sources of climate finance. To unlock the full potential of Nature-Based Solutions, we need to explore innovative and diversified financing mechanisms, including carbon markets, blended finance, private sector investment, green bonds, and other sustainable financing instruments capable of mobilizing the scale of resources required,” he said.

Drawing on Ghana’s experience, he referenced initiatives such as Green Ghana Day, the REDD+ programme, forest landscape restoration efforts and emerging carbon market participation as examples of how nature-based solutions can generate environmental and economic benefits, including green jobs and livelihood support.

He noted that Africa’s forests, wetlands, mangroves, savannahs and wider biodiversity assets should be treated not only as environmental resources but also as strategic economic assets.

Jinapor also called for stronger policy integration to ensure nature-based solutions are embedded in national development planning, rather than treated as isolated environmental projects.

According to him, effective implementation will require enabling regulatory frameworks that attract investment while safeguarding communities and ecosystems, alongside equitable benefit-sharing for local populations.

He further emphasised the importance of collaboration across governments, academia, civil society, development partners, Indigenous communities and the private sector.

“Scaling up Nature-Based Solutions cannot be achieved by governments alone. It requires stronger cross-sector collaboration among governments, academia, the private sector, civil society, development partners, and local communities. By working together, we can transform promising pilot initiatives into large-scale programmes that protect biodiversity, strengthen climate resilience, create green jobs, and improve livelihoods,” he said.

The discussions also highlighted the role of research and scientific innovation in accelerating implementation. Jinapor said the evidence base for nature-based solutions is now strong, and the focus must shift to scaling impact.

“The challenge before us is no longer proving that Nature-Based Solutions work. The evidence is already overwhelming. The challenge is scaling them with speed, integrity, and measurable impact,” he said.

He urged governments to mainstream nature-based solutions into climate, agriculture, water and development policies, while encouraging research institutions to produce locally relevant data to guide decision-making.

He also called on the private sector to move beyond corporate social responsibility and invest in long-term opportunities such as sustainable forestry, regenerative agriculture, ecosystem restoration and carbon markets.

Jinapor shared the panel with Emerita Professor Yaa Ntiamoa-Baidu and Professor John Gyapong, who also underscored the importance of biodiversity conservation and strengthening African research systems.

The panel formed part of activities marking the 2026 Day of Scientific Renaissance of Africa (DSRA), an African Union-recognised observance promoting science, technology and innovation for sustainable development across the continent.