Lusaka, Zambia | Uganda’s Finance Minister, Matia Kasaija, has applauded Africa’s growing collective resolve to place climate-responsive economic transformation at the heart of the continent’s development agenda, calling climate action a powerful driver of growth rather than a constraint.
Kasaija, who also chairs the Global Coalition of Finance Ministers for Climate Action, said Africa’s finance leaders must speak with one voice rooted in the continent’s priorities and lived realities.
His remarks were delivered on his behalf by Dr Albert Musisi, the Commissioner for Macro-Economic Policy at Uganda’s Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, during the opening of the second meeting of African Ministers of Finance in Lusaka.
“This Forum will promote peer-to-peer learning, strengthen institutional capacities, and ensure that Africa’s economic planning fully integrates climate risk, adaptation needs and the opportunities presented by green growth,” Kasaija said.
The high-level meeting brings together finance ministers and senior officials to advance the work of the Global Coalition of Finance Ministers for Climate Action, whose core objective is to embed climate action within public finance management systems.
The Coalition supports countries to align national budgets with the Paris Agreement, promote carbon pricing, mobilise private finance and share best practices for building low-carbon, climate-resilient economies.
Kasaija stressed that climate action should be viewed as a catalyst for economic transformation, job creation and food security, while expanding access to clean energy and protecting natural assets critical to African communities.
“This meeting is therefore timely and urgent for ministries of finance to use their fiscal power in shaping macroeconomic, fiscal and financial strategies for Africa to thrive,” he said.
Dr Sam Mugume Koojo, a technical coordinator at the Secretariat for Uganda, noted that several African countries have already made progress in green budgeting and climate-responsive public finance.
He cited strengthened climate tagging systems, the establishment of climate finance units, and the introduction of green bonds and other innovative financing instruments as evidence of growing momentum across the continent.
Representing Zambia’s Finance Minister, Accountant General Nsandi Manza warned that Africa is already experiencing the harsh impacts of climate change despite its wealth of natural resources, renewable energy potential and human capital.
“The reality of climate vulnerability and climate opportunity defines the purpose of our meeting,” Manza said.
“Across Africa, droughts, floods, cyclones and food insecurity are no longer distant risks. They are present and costly realities.” Manza noted.
She added that climate shocks are steadily reducing Africa’s gross domestic product, straining public resources and undermining long-term development gains.
However, Manza emphasised that Africa also holds a central place in the global climate solution.
“There is a clear opportunity to translate this potential into bankable and growth-enhancing economic strategies,” she said, urging finance ministries to turn climate ambition into practical investments that deliver jobs, resilience and inclusive growth.
The Lusaka meeting is expected to produce concrete recommendations on how African countries can better harness fiscal policy and public finance tools to confront climate risks while accelerating sustainable development.
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