Officials from governments and international financial institutions are organising a series of planning sessions to raise finance ahead of the COP27 Climate Summit in Sharm al Sheik in November. The latest meeting brought together Africa's finance ministers and bank governors in Marrakech, Morocco. Top of their list was financing the Global Goal on Adaptation agreed at COP26 last year. In its latest Economic Outlook, the African Development Bank says that the continent will need to spend $1.6 trillion on climate mitigation and adaption by 2030.

Ministers in Cairo are gearing up their preparations for the summit and have launched a National Climate Change Strategy 2050. Environment Minister Yasmine Fouad received a delegation from the IMF this week to set out Egypt's efforts in the climate sector. 'COP27 will be the right moment to seize the opportunity and further turn the climate challenge into an opportunity for sustainable development and economic prosperity through investing in a green future for people and planet,' the government states.

However, the forecasts of what funds will be needed have always been far removed from the actual sums committed. At COP26, the question of ensuring that rich countries finance the consequences of global warming, often referred to as 'loss and damage' was kicked into the long grass. Resolving this in Egypt could prove elusive.