Exclusive Interview with Iain Banner on Channel Africa – Scaling Climate Finance & Green Investment

Exclusive Interview with Iain Banner on Channel Africa –Scaling Climate Finance & Green Investment

The Africa Green Economy Summit (AGES) 2026 will take place from 24–27 February 2026 in Cape Town, South Africa, under the theme “From Ambition to Action: Scaling Investment in Africa’s Green and Blue Solutions.”

In this exclusive interview on Channel Africa‘s Africa In Business (aired January 2026), host Thami Ngubeni speaks with Iain Banner, Founder and Chairman of GO GREEN AFRICA, to discuss the summit’s role in addressing Africa’s climate finance challenges.

Key Discussion Points:

• Climate finance currently covers only 25% of Sub-Saharan Africa’s annual needs (per the Africa Climate Finance Tracking Report 2025), leaving a 75% delivery gap — despite Africa contributing just 3–4% of global emissions.
• The summit shifts focus from high-level ambitions (drawing on COP30 outcomes in Brazil) to bankable, investment-ready projects that attract global capital for tangible impact, including job creation.
• Emphasis on innovative models like blended finance, green bonds, and carbon markets explored in breakaway sessions.
• Protecting Africa’s natural assets, such as carbon sinks in the DRC and Gabon (holding ~32 trillion tons of carbon), through community-benefiting initiatives like ecotourism, rangeland management, and wildlife conservation.
• Practical format: Plenary sessions over two days, plus pitch stages featuring 56 companies presenting directly to investors for funding and partnerships.
• Banner stresses rebuilding trust in carbon markets (post past issues) and views the summit as a platform to connect global capital with African opportunities, tackling the funding gap “one mouthful at a time.”

The interview is promotional and optimistic, positioning AGES 2026 as a decisive platform for scaling green investments, leveraging post-COP momentum, and enabling Africa’s sustainable transition through actionable, trusted partnerships