Second Inter-regional Exchange of Ministries of Finance for Climate
Strengthening cooperation between Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean
From 9 to 11 September 2026, representatives from Ministries of Finance from Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) gathered in Salvador de Bahia, Brazil, for the 2nd Inter-regional Exchange of Ministries of Finance for Climate.
The three-day meeting provided a dedicated space for Ministries of Finance from both regions to exchange directly on a shared challenge: how to strengthen fiscal and financial resilience in the face of climate change and related economic shocks, and translate climate commitments into implementation.
As climate impacts increasingly affect public finances, Ministries of Finance are playing a growing role in managing climate-related fiscal risks and integrating resilience into budget planning, public financial management and broader economic decision-making. Yet countries are approaching these challenges from different institutional and economic contexts, creating significant opportunities for peer learning across regions.
Building on the first inter-regional exchange held in September 2025 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the Salvador meeting brought African and LAC experiences into dialogue through country cases, technical discussions and participatory peer exchanges. Rather than a traditional conference format, the event placed Ministries themselves at the centre of the conversation, creating space to discuss not only successful approaches but also implementation challenges, institutional bottlenecks and lessons learned.
Discussions explored the fiscal and financial instruments available to strengthen resilience to climate and disaster risks and economic shocks, as well as the institutional and governance arrangements needed to put them into practice. Participants also considered how Ministries of Finance can work across government and how experiences developed in one region can inform approaches in another, while recognising differences in national circumstances.
Beyond the technical discussions, the exchange contributed to a broader ambition: building sustained South–South cooperation among Ministries of Finance working on climate. By connecting peers from Africa and LAC, the initiative seeks to create an ongoing space in which countries can share practical experience, identify common priorities and develop solutions grounded in the realities of emerging and developing economies.
The exchange was convened by the LAC Regional Climate Change Platform of Economy and Finance Ministries (MEF Climate Change Platform) and the Pan-African Finance Ministers Forum for Climate Action (PAFCA), bringing together Ministries of Finance from Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean, with support from the 2050 Pathways Platform, the French Development Agency (AFD), the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), and the Institute for Climate Economics (I4CE).
The lessons emerging from Salvador will help inform the next steps of this growing inter-regional collaboration, with a focus on turning peer exchange into practical approaches that can support support Ministries of Finance from Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean in advancing towards more resilient economies.
