African countries that have suffered the most from climate-related disasters are showing the greatest resilience in adapting to future risks, according to the Resilient Economies Index released by the Global Center on Adaptation.
The report reveals a clear pattern where countries facing frequent climate disasters over the past 25 years tend to show stronger leadership in adaptation policy and finance, as repeated shocks build urgency. The Index assesses 54 African countries across three pillars of economy, policy, and finance to create a comprehensive picture of national and regional resilience.
The Index introduces a new metric called Gross Resilient Product, which estimates the share of gross domestic product not exposed to climate shocks. In this first edition, the best performers have already reduced gross domestic product exposure to roughly 5 percent, providing a concrete benchmark for what best in class looks like as countries seek to reduce growth risks.
Ten African economies have achieved the highest assessed resilience performance, classified as pioneering, while another ten economies across all sub-regions are assessed at the entry-level foundational stage. The top performers include Burundi, Kenya, Mozambique, Sierra Leone, and Uganda in Tier 1, followed by the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Malawi, Nigeria, and Tanzania in Tier 2.
H.E. Macky Sall, Chair of the Global Center on Adaptation Board and fourth President of Senegal, said, “This Index shows that Africa is leading in building resilient economies, even while standing at the frontline of the climate crisis.”
Countries such as Ethiopia, Mozambique and Uganda, which have endured repeated disasters, are leading on adaptation policy and investment, demonstrating how hard-earned experience can drive institutional learning and resilience building. Uganda continues to battle floods, landslides, and droughts. Ethiopia faces advancing desertification alongside recurrent floods and droughts, while Mozambique has weathered destructive cyclones and rising sea levels.
Despite these achievements, the report reveals significant challenges. Forty countries score above 50 percent on the policy pillar of the new Index, reflecting stronger national adaptation frameworks, clearer priorities and progress on inclusiveness. However, only fourteen countries reach the same threshold in the assessment on finance, revealing a widening gap between policy ambition and implementation.
The Index shows that 62 percent of adaptation finance in Africa comes in the form of debt, a burden that limits fiscal space even for top performers like Kenya. This overreliance on borrowing is creating what the report calls a debt wall, where rising interest obligations and limited non-debt finance crowd out the very investments needed to build resilience.
Ghana earned recognition as one of Africa’s stronger performers with a robust overall ranking and pioneering status for its economic resilience framework. However, the country scored only consolidating on finance, exposing a widening chasm between what Ghana wants to achieve and what it can actually afford to implement.
To meet Africa’s adaptation needs, every country would have to mobilize finance at the pace of the continent’s top performer at 1.45 billion United States dollars per year. At current trends, only approximately 25 to 33 percent of the minimum funding need will be met by 2030.
The Global Center on Adaptation warns that countries with lower exposure to disasters should not wait for crises before strengthening their adaptation frameworks. The report concludes that direct experience with climate impacts can be a powerful catalyst for action, but nations do not need to wait for disaster to strike before building resilience.
