From Policy Bottlenecks to Data Breakthroughs: African Cities and Businesses Chart a Climate Resilience Path

By Eunice Ngui, 

NAIROBI, Kenya 21-24th June 2026 – As Africa's urban population continues to grow, cities are facing increasing pressure on essential services, including water, sanitation, energy and transport. At the same time, governments are increasingly looking to the private sector to help finance and accelerate climate action.

This was the focus of a high-level panel discussion held during the ongoing Innovate4Cities Conference in Nairobi. Hosted by the Global Covenant of Mayors and C40 Cities, the session brought together business leaders, climate innovators and city representatives to discuss how stronger partnerships can help cities become more resilient and sustainable.

Moderated by Njenga Muchekehu, Deputy Head of C40 Cities for the Africa Region, the discussion examined the policy, financing and technology challenges that continue to slow urban climate action despite growing private sector interest.

How ESG Reporting and National Climate Goals Are Shaping Business Investment

Jackson Koimbori of KEPSA Consult said businesses are increasingly aligning their investments with Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) reporting requirements and national climate commitments.

"It is no longer about corporate social responsibility," he said. "Right now, we are looking into the ESG reporting framework. Businesses have been identified as major contributors to carbon emissions, so our endeavour in this engagement is to contribute to the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs)."

However, Koimbori argued that high electricity costs and policy challenges continue to discourage investment in clean energy. Although Kenya generates nearly 90 percent of its electricity from renewable sources, he noted that electricity prices remain among the highest on the continent.

"We are targeting 100 percent renewable energy, but if the cost remains high, where is the business benefit of transitioning?" he asked.

He also highlighted infrastructure challenges, noting that while Kenya has around 10,000 LPG-powered vehicles, the country has fewer than 15 LPG filling stations, most of them located in Nairobi. While welcoming recent government incentives for electric vehicles, he said more investment is needed to support the country's green transition.

Closing the Gap Between Innovation and Implementation

The discussion also explored why many promising climate innovations struggle to move beyond pilot projects.

Prabhakar Vanam of the Kenya Climate Innovation Centre said cities continue to produce innovative climate solutions, but many startups fail before they can scale.

"Cities are hotbeds of innovation—there is no shortage of fantastic ideas," he said. "But the real challenge is scaling up. Within one year, 80 percent of these startups fall into the 'valley of death.'"

Vanam said procurement systems often prevent smaller climate technology companies from competing for city contracts because many procurement requirements are designed for larger, established firms.

To address this, he called for more innovation-friendly procurement processes, the creation of urban living laboratories where new technologies can be tested, and dedicated funding to support pilot projects.

"We aren't talking about millions—just a simple budget to test a proof of concept within the city infrastructure," he said.

Turning Climate Data into Better Decisions

Pat Cummens of Esri highlighted the importance of making climate data easier for city officials to understand and apply in planning.

"Climate models are data-intensive and complex," Cummens said. "Our job is to translate that into something a resilience officer or city planner can relate to."

He explained that geographic information systems (GIS) can combine multiple datasets to help cities identify priorities such as areas that need more tree cover to reduce extreme heat or suitable locations for cooling centres.

Cummens also noted that Esri provides free software for early-stage startups and offers community platforms such as the Africa GeoPortal to help governments securely share and use climate data.

"We want everybody to be able to use the data and the tools to inform decision-making," he said. "We are now in a position to translate that information into real action."

 

Unlocking Public-Private Partnerships

The panel also examined the challenges facing Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs), which are widely seen as an important way of financing climate-resilient infrastructure.

Vanam said a typical PPP approval process in Kenya involves 43 steps and can take up to 18 months, making it difficult for projects to move forward quickly.

He identified land preparation as one of the biggest obstacles, saying cities need to identify and prepare suitable land, complete environmental assessments and provide basic infrastructure before inviting private investors.

Despite these challenges, he pointed to blended finance as a successful model for attracting investment. He cited the SWEAT programme, which secured £5 million from development partners and leveraged four times that amount in private investment, resulting in 18 climate-resilient infrastructure and value chain projects.

Vanam encouraged innovators to demonstrate their technical expertise and ability to deliver rather than relying solely on ambitious growth projections.

A Shared Vision for Climate Action

The discussion concluded with a call for stronger collaboration between governments, businesses, innovators and development partners.

Koimbori noted that the establishment of the Green Climate Fund's regional office in Nairobi presents new opportunities for climate finance but stressed that projects must be supported by strong Measurement, Reporting and Verification (MRV) systems to attract investment.

Throughout the session, moderator Njenga Muchekehu guided the discussion around practical solutions for strengthening partnerships between cities and the private sector.

As discussions continue at the Innovate4Cities Conference, participants agreed that the knowledge, technology and financing needed to address urban climate challenges already exist. What remains is creating an enabling policy environment, modern procurement systems and stronger collaboration to help African cities deliver climate solutions at scale.

 

How Was the Official Closing of  Innovate4Cities Conference 2026 Nairobi Kenya Like?

 

UN-Habitat Closes Innovate4Cities Conference with Call for Stronger Urban Climate Action

By Eunice Ngui, 

NAIROBI, Kenya, 24th June 2026 – The Innovate4Cities Conference concluded in Nairobi with a strong call for governments, researchers, businesses and communities to turn climate knowledge into practical action, as UN-Habitat celebrated record participation from across Africa.

Speaking during the closing session at the United Nations Office at Nairobi, Rafael Tuts, Director of the Global Solutions Division at UN-Habitat, praised the conference for bringing together more than 1,200 participants from around the world, describing it as the largest and most diverse gathering in the event’s history.

Tuts said the conference demonstrated the growing commitment to addressing climate change through cities, while highlighting Nairobi’s important role in advancing global climate research.

“The whole room, which is really fantastic. And this is very similar. I can testify in Montreal was exactly the same. And I’m really happy to see this replicated here in Nairobi,” he said.

He noted that the conference venue has become part of the history of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), having hosted key meetings linked to the Special Report on Climate Change and Cities, including workshops where experts spent long hours reviewing scientific drafts.

“More than hundreds of colleagues here in the room spent very late hours reviewing this second order draft of the special report. This is a true commitment that is shown for everyone here,” Tuts said.

 

Africa Takes Centre Stage

One of the conference’s major achievements was its strong African representation. According to Tuts, about 900 participants, representing three-quarters of those in attendance, came from across Africa.

The conference also brought together a diverse mix of stakeholders, including academic institutions, non-governmental organizations, private sector representatives, local governments and national governments.

“We expect that each of the stepping stones of innovation for cities has this unique profile, this unique participation, and unique characteristics. This is quite impressive,” he said.

Tuts said the conference showed that Africa is not only hosting important climate discussions but is also playing a leading role in shaping solutions for sustainable cities.

 

Turning Knowledge into Action

Reflecting on the global climate landscape, Tuts acknowledged the challenges facing climate action but said there are encouraging signs of progress.

He noted that about 80 percent of Nationally Determined Contributions now include well-developed urban components, demonstrating growing recognition that cities are central to achieving global climate goals.

“We have 80% of the nationally determined contributions that have well-developed urban contents, showing that there is strong recognition of cities in addressing climate action. This is a huge opportunity,” he said.

Tuts also echoed remarks made earlier in the conference by UN-Habitat Executive Director Anacláudia Rossbach, who emphasized that every fraction of a degree matters in limiting global warming.

“We are already in the 1.5 world, and 1.5 is still better than 1.6, and 1.6 is much better than 1.7,” he said, stressing that even small increases in global temperatures have major consequences for people’s quality of life.

He added that the Innovate4Cities community continues to expand, bringing together more researchers, policymakers and practitioners committed to accelerating climate action.

 

Partnership Driving Results

Tuts thanked the IPCC, UN-Habitat staff, conference organizers and partners for working together to deliver the event, describing the collaboration as an example of effective partnership.

 

“It’s a true partnership. It’s actually becoming one team, and we don’t have that very often—where two different organizations come together and truly work as a team. I’ve seen it in Montreal; I’ve seen it again here,” he said.

He urged participants to apply the knowledge gained during the conference in their own institutions and communities.

“There is a lot of expectation from all of you when you go home—back to your institutions, back to your communities—to translate what you have learned, what you have contributed here, into impact. From energy into impact,” he said.

Closing the conference, Tuts thanked participants for their commitment and officially declared the event closed, expressing confidence that the partnerships and ideas developed in Nairobi would continue driving climate action well beyond the conference.

The Innovate4Cities Conference, held at the United Nations Office at Nairobi, brought together researchers, policymakers, city leaders, businesses and civil society representatives to explore innovative solutions for building climate-resilient and sustainable cities.I think this version is publication-ready. It follows the inverted pyramid style, uses clear subheadings, keeps the language simple and natural, and avoids sounding AI-generated while preserving the key facts and quotations. It also reads consistently with the previous articles we’ve worked on together.

 

 

Compiled by:

Eunice Ngui,

Climate Change,Sustainable & Resilient Urban Cities,Food Systems,UN SDGs,Agriculture & Biodiversity Editor

 

 

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