Cities are globally exposed to climate change effects, which revealed that 55% of the world's population is at risk. Despite their low contribution to global greenhouse gas emissions, African cities are paying the highest cost of the threats caused by climate change due to their rapid urban community growth, high population density, and inadequate urban planning. This review has explored and demonstrated the benefit of Nature-based Solutions (NbS) implementation for urban climate crisis resilience that have been implemented globally for sharing information on sustainable city planning in Africa. The analysis is based on the African countries’ Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) reports, the institution’s review, and scientific articles. The successful implementation of NbS since 2015 in developed countries confirms that NbS has a multi-functional environmental benefit for urban and pre-urban populations. It reduces cities' vulnerability to climate threats and advances numerous Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) achievement. It revealed only 15 (27,7%) African countries have implemented NbS with 119 projects to adapt and tackle climate change in water, agriculture, forest and woodland, coastal and marine habitat, grassland, and mountain habitat sectors. Rural areas are paid more attention than cities despite the rapid urbanization in the face of extreme climate effects. Furthermore, the review process observed some challenges in translating the approaches of NbS into measurable actions for African urban climate resilience: (i) issues in the governance of urban planning and policies; (ii) insufficient mobilization of resources and lack of private sector involvement in financing NbS; and (iii) lack of comprehensive evidence-based strategies and knowledge for successful operationalization of NbS in African cities.

By 2022, 42.39% of the sub‐Saharan Africa (SSA) population was living in urban areas. This urbanization correlates with increasing poverty, unemployment, food insecurity, environmental pollution, and the prevalence of informal settlements. These challenges worsened urban food insecurity during the COVID‐19 pandemic in SSA cities. This review analyzed the role of urban farming system as a pivotal means to enhance urban food security, incorporating socioeconomic integration and environmental sustainability. The analysis is grounded in a systematic review using specific keywords, evaluating 46 articles and institutional reports related to the subject. The results revealed that 3.62% of SSA countries have implemented national urban governance and policies with minimal focus on urban farming. Rapid urbanization, urban population growth, and climate change are key factors contributing to cities' vulnerabilities to food insecurity in SSA. Predominantly characterized by horticultural practice, urban farming enhances the food supply system, nutritious security, jobs and income generation, reduces transportation costs, promotes the consumption of fresh food, and mitigates food loss in cities. Despite its importance, urban farming in SSA encounters several challenges: (i) urbanization governance and policy, (ii) knowledge and technology in urban farming, (iii) access to land and water, (iv) financing and capacity building for urban farming, and (v) environmental pollution. SSA countries need a coordinated mix of urbanization policies and technological advancements to integrate innovative urban farming methods, bolstering cities’ resilience to food insecurity. Implementing these measures could advance the achievement of sustainable development goals 2 and 11 in SSA cities.

Large gaps remain in our understanding of the vulnerability of specific animal taxa and regions to climate change, especially regarding extreme climate impact events. Here, we assess African apes, flagship and highly important umbrella species for sympatric biodiversity. We estimated past (1981–2010) and future exposure to climate change impacts across 363 sites in Africa for RCP2.6 and RCP6.0 for near term (2021–2050) and long term (2071–2099). We used fully harmonized climate data and data on extreme climate impact events from the Inter-Sectoral Impact Model Intercomparison Project (ISIMIP). Historic data show that 171 sites had positive temperature anomalies for at least nine of the past ten years with the strongest anomalies (up to 0.56°C) estimated for eastern chimpanzees. Climate projections suggest that temperatures will increase across all sites, while precipitation changes are more heterogeneous. We estimated a future increase in heavy precipitation events for 288 sites, and an increase in the number of consecutive dry days by up to 20 days per year (maximum increase estimated for eastern gorillas). All sites will be frequently exposed to wildfires and crop failures in the future, and the latter could impact apes indirectly through increased deforestation. 84% of sites are projected to be exposed to heatwaves and 78% of sites to river floods. Tropical cyclones and droughts were only projected for individual sites in western and central Africa. We further compiled available evidence on how climate change impacts could affect apes, for example, through heat stress and dehydration, a reduction in water sources and fruit trees, and reduced physiological performance, body condition, fertility, and survival. To support necessary research on the sensitivity and adaptability of African apes to climate change impacts, and the planning and implementation of conservation measures, we provide detailed results for each ape site on the open-access platform A.P.E.S. Wiki.