The Green Economy Forum

The Green Economy Forum is APSCA 2026's most investment-facing forum — designed for the leaders, institutions, and investors who sit at the intersection of environmental sustainability and economic growth. It operates across three interconnected strands.

Green Finance — Closing Africa's Climate Finance Gap. Africa receives less than 5% of global climate finance despite contributing less than 4% of global greenhouse gas emissions and facing disproportionately severe climate impacts. This strand examines the structural barriers blocking African governments from accessing the Green Climate Fund, Adaptation Fund, green bonds, and bilateral climate facilities — and the practical reforms needed to unlock capital at the scale Africa's green transition demands.

Critical Minerals & Green Hydrogen — Africa's Strategic Position. Africa holds the majority of the world's cobalt, manganese, graphite, lithium, and platinum-group metals needed for the global clean energy transition. It also has the solar and wind potential to produce green hydrogen at globally competitive costs. Yet most of this value is exported as raw material rather than as processed product or clean energy. This strand examines how African governments can capture more value from their green endowment — through local processing, sovereign wealth management, green hydrogen export, and strategic industrial policy.

Climate-Resilient Infrastructure — Building for Governance 2030. Africa's infrastructure is increasingly exposed to climate risks — floods, droughts, extreme heat — that threaten the economic returns on public investment. This strand examines how governments integrate climate risk assessment into infrastructure project appraisal, how adaptation finance complements mitigation finance, and how regional bodies can coordinate on cross-border climate resilience.