Uganda’s Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation , Dr. Monica Musenero, has underscored the need for Africa to have a prominent voice in the development of solutions to mitigate climate change.
Dr. Musenero noted that with a continent estimated to host the largest population (25%of the world’s population ) by 2050, Africa should not be left behind in the development of cutting edge technologies that will mitigate against the devastating effects of climate change .
The advancement of mobile money in Africa such as Airtel money-as a bellwether technology , Dr. Musenero noted ,clearly underlines that Africa as a continent have the right capabilities to spearhead development of technology solutions.
Dr. Musenero was speaking at the recently concluded Uganda Climate Tech Summit held in the capital Kampala.
The Minister told international and local delegates that graced the summit that Uganda has always been up-to-task to spearhead development and adoption of climate change mitigation solutions and this is evident across multiple facets with the country’s climate technology scene underlying its prominent role.
“With a growing population, most of whom will be youthful, we expect Uganda to be a cradle for continued ideation within the region, in the Global South, and globally across multiple facets , Dr. Musenero stated , adding that With a surplus of 546MW of renewable energy, Uganda will continue being at the forefront of green energy security across the East African region through exports to neighboring countries such as Kenya.
Additionally, Musenero said the continued sustainance of renewable energy sources will serve as a catalyst for green manufacturing like the Kayoola fully electric buses being produced by Uganda’s automakers Kiira Motors Corporation , green cities such as – the model city being created in Jinja and other related infrastructure due to reduced emissions and carbon neutrality.
With an estimated 4m tones in Cobalt reserves, Uganda promises to help deliver on the global ambition of massively reducing carbon emissions and transitioning to e-vehicles.
Uganda’s STI Minister ,Dr. Monica Musenero addressing delegates at the first Uganda Climate Tech Summit held in the capital Kampala.
“True to our Uganda’s culture of innovation, Kiira motors and Kara bikes are leading the pathway to adoption of e-mobility in Uganda with target to achieve 100% adoption for mass transit,” she added.
Dr. Musenero ,however , regretted to note that climate finance to drive climate change mitigation is still a big challenge for the African continent .
“It is up for developing nations to look for innovative ways to achieve the much required innovative financing. We see carbon credits as a potential source for innovative climate financing,” she said.
Ms. Patricia Roy Akullo, the Head of the Climate Finance Unit at Uganda’s. Ministry of Finance told the summit that Uganda has put in place a 21.8bn USDs climate finance strategy to fund climate actions in 13 sectors .
