Chair of the African Group of Negotiators on Climate Change (AGN), Nana Dr. Antwi-Boasiako Amoah, has called on the international community to honor existing climate agreements across finance, adaptation, and development to rebuild trust in the multilateral climate process.
Addressing the incoming COP 31 Presidency during virtual informal consultations on October 14, 2026, Dr. Amoah stressed that keeping the 1.5°C goal within reach and accelerating implementation depend directly on providing developing nations with the necessary resources to act.
“Developing countries need the means to act, and the multilateral system has to deliver on what it has already agreed,” Dr. Amoah stated, outlining the African Group’s key priorities across three central clusters: climate finance, adaptation, and climate and development.
Under the climate finance agenda, the AGN Chair urged Parties to move beyond delay and translate previous agreements into operational progress. Specifically, he called on CMA 8 to advance substantive discussions on Article 9.1 under the Climate Finance Work Programme agreed in Belém.
“Its provisions are clear, and they cannot keep being put off. Let’s deliver on what we agreed on,” Dr. Amoah emphasized.
Additionally, the African Group called for a clear signal regarding the replenishment of the Green Climate Fund (GCF), emphasizing that the COP should utilize existing mandates to assess developing countries’ financial needs to inform resource mobilization.
On the Adaptation Fund, Dr. Amoah noted that negotiation text is ready and urged the COP to mandate the Board to commence transition arrangements so the fund can serve the Paris Agreement using Article 6.4 share of proceeds.
Addressing adaptation priorities, Dr. Amoah proposed establishing a technical task force to advance work on adaptation indicators, metadata, and methodologies. Clarifying the scope of this initiative to reassure negotiating partners, he noted that the AGN is not advocating for a permanent administrative body.
“Let me reassure Parties that the African Group is not seeking a permanent body. We emphasise the agreement on a two-year process focused on metadata and methodologies,” Dr. Amoah noted, expressing confidence that this technical work could be concluded in the first week of negotiations.
The AGN Chair further highlighted the urgent need for structured discussions on tripling adaptation finance by 2035 and pursuing the Global Goal on Adaptation in line with Articles 9.1, 10, and 11 of the Paris Agreement.
He stressed that defining clear baselines and financing trajectories is essential for multilateral credibility. “This matters for trust in the multilateral system. We cannot simply set aside what we agreed before,” he warned.
In the cluster on climate and development, Dr. Amoah prioritized the operationalization of the Just Transition Mechanism and the continuation of the Just Transition Work Programme. He advocated for a two-tier institutional architecture encompassing technical and political dimensions, with a clear focus on securing financing modalities that connect UNFCCC processes with external actors.
Turning to international trade, Dr. Amoah reaffirmed Africa’s active engagement in the Climate Change and Trade Dialogue, insisting that its outcomes must feed into the high-level roundtable expected from the Subsidiary Bodies.
“That process must be owned by Parties, not left only to the Chairs,” Dr. Amoah insisted.
Concluding his intervention, Dr. Amoah expressed the African Group’s readiness to work collaboratively across all delegations.
“The African Group stands ready to work with you and all Parties toward a COP 31 that delivers implementation, finance and trust,” he concluded.