Global organisation the World Green Building Council (WorldGBC) will support Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa to develop or advance national climate action roadmaps for their building sectors.

The national green building councils in these four countries will each co‑create a roadmap for the buildings and construction sector in their respective countries that align with global and national climate goals.

These roadmaps will set out short-, medium- and long‑term actions for all key stakeholders to cut energy use, improve efficiency and increase circularity and resilience, the WorldGBC says.

Each roadmap will be science‑based and follow a common methodology, and be framed around specific, measurable goals that stakeholders can use to track progress and hold themselves and others to account.

Buildings and construction account for about one-third of global energy-related carbon emissions, making the sector central to achieving international climate targets. Up to 2050, projected new construction equates to the equivalent of a city the size of Paris every week.

The largest growth in new floor space is expected to be in Africa, where a significant proportion of the 2050 building stock has yet to be built.

This Africa‑focused expansion builds on the impact of similar national roadmap projects led by WorldGBC in other regions, including in Europe through the BuildingLife initiative, which has delivered 12 national Whole Life Carbon roadmaps, influenced EU building policy through the revised Energy Performance of Buildings Directive and mobilised more than 800 companies to commit to lifecycle decarbonisation.

This latest expansion of WorldGBC´s project also aligns with international efforts led by the UN Environment Programme‑hosted Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction (GlobalABC), WorldGBC says.

Further, each participating green building council will lead an inclusive, nationally driven process to coordinate stakeholders across the full building and construction value chain.

“This roadmap will translate South Africa’s climate commitments into actionable, locally relevant pathways for decarbonising the built environment, beginning with Gauteng as a high-impact pilot,” says Green Building Council South Africa (GBCSA) public sector advocacy and sustainability manager Bakang Moeng.

South Africa's roadmap will align policy, industry and finance around clear sector targets, while strengthening resilience and supporting a just transition, she says.

“The grant will enable the GBCSA and its project partners to convene stakeholders, lead robust technical and consultative processes and deliver a credible, scalable model that can be replicated across provinces to accelerate national climate action,” she adds.

Additionally, data collected by WorldGBC shows that, where national roadmaps have been delivered in Europe, green building councils report increased ambition in more than 40 different policies and more than €300-million of public sector innovation funding deployed into cutting emissions from the sector.

Climate action roadmaps are proven tools for translating global commitments into real-world delivery in the built environment. The policy and investment decisions made today will shape emissions, energy security and quality of life for generations to come, the WorldGBC says.

By setting out clear, time‑bound actions for all parts of the value chain, they help shift progress from high‑level goals to coordinated implementation, aligning policy, industry leadership and investment to accelerate emissions reductions and strengthen resilience at scale.

“At the WorldGBC, roadmaps for the building and construction industry are a core mechanism for delivering our global Building the Transition strategy, helping translate long‑term climate ambition into coordinated action on the ground,” says WorldGBC CEO Cristina Gamboa.

Across its global network, these approaches have proven effective in aligning policy, industry and investment, accelerating progress at scale while unlocking the health, economic and resilience benefits of sustainable buildings, she notes.

Supporting and further partnering with national green building councils in Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa reflects the global body's commitment to ensuring that the transition to a zero-emissions and climate‑resilient built environment is inclusive, equitable and regionally led.

“By placing green building councils at the centre of delivery, the work ensures that climate action roadmaps are locally owned, practical and capable of mobilising long‑term commitment.

“We will continue to build on this momentum to launch further national roadmap projects across the Asia‑Pacific region later this year,” Gamboa says.

Roadmap-based approached are formally recognised by the COP30 presidency, the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Climate High-level Champions as a Plan to Accelerate Solutions (PAS). These approaches are helping to deliver the Climate Action Agenda and accelerate the implementation of related solutions where it matters most.

The WorldGBC also co-leads the development of this PAS, she adds.