Published on March 31, 2025
Our latest policy brief is authored by Sabrine Emran (PCNS), Hanne Knaepen (ECDPM), and Larabi Jaïdi (PCNS).
The analysis delves into the critical role of North Africa in the global energy transition and the urgent need for enhanced climate finance to address the region’s escalating challenges. The brief highlights the potential for a mutually beneficial partnership between the EU and North Africa, focusing on sustainable energy solutions and climate resilience.
Key Messages include:
- Aligning Climate and Energy Priorities for Mutual Benefit: North Africa’s abundant solar and wind resources can significantly contribute to the EU’s decarbonization and energy security objectives. A long-term, equitable partnership centered on green industrialization, energy market integration, and climate resilience offers substantial economic, environmental, and geopolitical advantages for both regions.
- Transforming Energy Partnerships for a Just Transition: Leveraging North Africa’s renewable energy potential can drive diversification, job creation, and energy security while supporting Europe’s green transition. The EU should address market disparities and bolster public-private partnerships, technical expertise, and investment in hydrogen and interconnections.
- Bridging the Climate Adaptation Finance Gap: North Africa faces a significant adaptation finance shortfall by 2030. Current EU funding is limited, and private sector engagement is hampered by a lack of bankable projects. Blended finance and green bonds present promising avenues for climate adaptation in crucial sectors like water, agriculture, and infrastructure.
- Setting Up Inclusive, Regional Policy Dialogues: Effective EU–North Africa cooperation necessitates trust, inclusive governance, and structured dialogue aligned with local development priorities. Multilevel dialogues, beyond regional bodies like the Union for the Mediterranean, can foster mutual cooperation. Empowering local institutions and addressing data gaps are essential.
- Innovative Financing for Sustainable Development: To unlock green growth and enhance climate resilience, the EU should scale up investment through the Global Gateway initiative, channeling dedicated climate finance to support renewables, water management, and resilient infrastructure via innovative, de-risking financial tools.
Context:
The EU recognizes North Africa’s strategic importance in the global energy transition, given its vast renewable energy potential. Recent initiatives like the Global Gateway Africa-Europe Investment Package have supported green energy projects in the region, including interconnections and renewable energy programs. However, substantial investment and infrastructure development are crucial for a just and sustainable transition.
North Africa faces escalating climate challenges, including rising temperatures, declining rainfall, and sea-level rise, threatening water and food security and exacerbating socio-economic vulnerabilities. Climate adaptation finance remains inadequate, necessitating proactive EU engagement.
The EU’s strategies, such as the New Pact for the Mediterranean and the Trans-Mediterranean Energy and Clean Tech Cooperation Initiative, are driven by geostrategic and economic interests, including energy security and migration control. However, concerns about extractivism, misalignment with North African priorities, and inconsistencies in financial disbursements persist. Geopolitical uncertainties further complicate the partnership.
This brief explores how to effectively address North Africa’s energy and climate adaptation finance gap, focusing on Morocco, Tunisia, and Egypt. It outlines pathways to increase adaptation finance and green energy investments, emphasizing the need for a mutually beneficial green energy and industrial strategy and a joint adaptation and resilience agenda.
