Delegates queue to enter the plenary hall for the opening of the High-Level Leaders Summit at the Second Africa Climate Summit (ACS2) in Addis Ababa, on September 8, 2025. (Photo by Luis TATO / AFP) (Photo by LUIS TATO/AFP via Getty Images) Credit – AFP via Getty Images—AFP or licensors
Leaders from around the world are gathering this week at the Second Africa Climate Summit (ACS2) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where they’ll advance the continent’s climate agenda and set priorities to present Africa as a “continent of solutions” ahead of COP30 in Belém in November.
The summit kicked off on Sept. 8 with the launch of a landmark cooperative framework in support of the Africa Green Industrialization Initiative (AGII). African Development Bank, Africa Finance Corporation, and KCB Group were among the financial institutions to pledge funds.
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The framework will mobilize over $100 billion to support green industrial opportunities in Africa. AGII, first announced at COP28, aims to advance green industrialization and investments across Africa. The funding represents a major step forward that will allow for the acceleration of renewable-powered industries on the continent.
The summit began with an opening ceremony that featured addresses from a number of African leaders, including Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, and Kenyan President William Ruto, as well as youth and civil society leaders.
In the keynote address, Abiy spoke of the many climate initiatives Ethiopia has adopted, and announced the country’s bid to host COP32 in 2027. “We invite the world to Africa’s capital of diplomacy and climate ambition to witness our solutions and to help shape the future,” he said.
Ruto spoke of the progress that has been made since the Nairobi Declaration, which was adopted during the first Africa Climate Summit in 2023 in Nairobi to establish a unifying framework for the continent regarding global climate negotiations. He cited advances in renewable energy and green infrastructure throughout the continent. But he also cautioned leaders against viewing the climate crisis only through the lens of their own countries.
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“No nation can survive this crisis alone,” he warned. “Only bold, united, and sustained collaboration can avert climate catastrophe. Isolation is not a winning strategy—it is courting failure.”
Speakers throughout the day echoed the same call for unity. In a panel focused on elevating the African Union’s role in global climate leadership, Brian Kagoro, managing director of programs at Open Society Foundations, noted that African leadership has traditionally approached climate development from the state level, rather than as a unit. “We were willing to forego the collective agenda that would enable us to get greater benefits,” he said, proposing that leaders present a unified, continental wide bargaining council for global negotiations, along with an African-led climate finance mechanism.
Abiy also unveiled the African Climate Innovation Compact—a continent-wide partnership that would bring together stakeholders such as universities, research institutions, rural communities, and other innovators to deliver 1,000 African climate solutions around issues such as energy, agriculture, and resilience. The Prime Minister highlighted the importance of focusing on Africa-led climate solutions—and positioning the continent as a leader in adaptation and the green economy. “We are not here to negotiate our survival,” he said during the opening ceremony. “We are here to design the world’s next climate economy.”
Coverage of the Second Africa Climate Summit is presented by the Pan Africa Climate Justice Alliance.
Write to Simmone Shah at simmone.shah@time.com.