ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast — November 25, 2025 — The African Development Fund (ADF) has approved a $14.64 million grant to scale up climate resilience efforts across Sahelian countries, targeting some of the region’s most vulnerable communities facing intensified droughts, heatwaves, and food insecurity.
The funding supports Project 2 of the Programme to Strengthen Resilience to Food and Nutrition Insecurity in the Sahel (P2-P2RS), a multi-country initiative aimed at tackling severe climate vulnerabilities across the region. The approval was granted on 21 November in Abidjan.
Climate Action Window: A Strategic Boost for Adaptation
The grant comes through the ADF’s Climate Action Window, a financing mechanism designed to fast-track adaptation projects in Africa’s most climate-exposed and low-income countries.
The new financing will help establish 60 climate-smart villages across 30 municipalities, significantly expanding proven community-based adaptation models already used in earlier phases of the programme.
Scaling Up Climate-Smart Villages
The climate-smart village approach focuses on:
Climate-resilient hydro-agricultural infrastructure Improved water management Diversified livelihoods Community-led climate adaptation solutions
These villages serve as innovation hubs where farmers adopt improved techniques, technologies, and crops that can withstand climate shocks—including drought-resistant seed varieties.
Strengthening Climate-Resilient Agriculture
The project will expand the regional seed system by:
Disseminating high-yielding, climate-resilient seed varieties Updating the Regional Catalogue of Species and Varieties Establishing a B2B seed networking portal Enhancing seed multiplication capacities of national research institutions and private seed companies
Women and young people—who face disproportionate climate vulnerabilities—will receive targeted training and capacity-building support to enhance their economic participation and resilience.
Improving Climate Data and Early Warning Systems
A major component of the project focuses on improving climate information systems, including:
Expanding real-time data collection through upgraded observation networks Developing an integrated digital platform for climate data management Establishing a regional system to monitor loss and damage Standardizing loss-and-damage reporting across the Sahel
These improvements aim to strengthen preparedness and decision-making by governments, farmers, and local authorities.
Enhancing Regional Resilience
The Sahel remains one of the world’s climate hotspots, where rising temperatures and unpredictable rainfall patterns have intensified food insecurity and displacement. The ADF-supported programme aims to build long-term resilience through coordinated regional interventions.
The African Development Bank Group emphasized that the grant marks another step in advancing climate adaptation, food security, and rural transformation across the Sahel.
