From September 23 to 25, 2025, Senegal will host a preparatory workshop for the West African region for the upcoming 30th Conference of the Parties (COP30) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Dakar.
This regional workshop, jointly organized by the ECOWAS and UEMOA Commissions, will be led by thematic coordinators of the West African region engaged in international negotiations through the analysis of the results of the 62nd session of the subsidiary bodies (SB62) and other key international meetings held in preparation for COP30.
The main objective of the workshop is to ensure that countries take ownership of the latest developments of SB62 and to formulate regional priorities for advocacy during the COP30 negotiations.
During this meeting in Dakar, West African climate negotiators will have the opportunity to identify gaps in the implementation of previous COP decisions and to make concrete proposals to be taken to the level of the African Group of Climate Negotiators and in the negotiations that will take place at COP30.
It will also be an opportunity to discuss the acquisition of a West African pavilion to present regional projects that have helped reduce or avoid greenhouse gas emissions and adaptation projects coordinated by the various ECOWAS Directorates and specialized Agencies as well as certain specialized sub-regional institutions.
The opening ceremony was chaired by Mr. Gueye, Director of Cabinet representing the Minister of Environment and Ecological Transition of the Republic of Senegal. The ceremony was also attended by Mr. Amadou TCHAMBOU, Resident Representative of the UEMOA Commission in Senegal, and Mr. Yao Bernard KOFFI, the Acting Director of Environment and Natural Resources of ECOWAS.
In addition to representatives of ECOWAS and UEMOA member states, several partners including UNFCCC, IOM, UNICEF, WASCAL, the AGRHYMET Regional Centre, the UNFCCC Regional Collaboration Centre, and thematic coordinators are taking part in the regional workshop.
As a reminder, COP30, the United Nations Climate Summit, will be held this year in Belem, Brazil, from November 10 to 21, 2025. The challenges of this Summit are, among other things, (i) to find financing solutions to gradually abandon fossil fuels; (ii) the adoption of the operationalization arrangements for the Loss and Damage Fund; (iii) the definition of a global objective for adaptation; (iv) the definition of a new collective quantified objective for financing climate action; and (v) the implementation of the Glasgow-Sharm El Sheikh work programme on the global objective on adaptation.
Participants in this preparatory workshop are the focal points of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and experts in charge of NDCs in ECOWAS Member States, representatives of the ECOWAS and UEMOA Commissions, CILSS/AGRHYMET, WASCAL, CRC/UNFCCC, IOM, UNICEF and the coordinators of the thematic groups.
