The present document has been prepared in support of the upcoming 12th Session of the African Ministerial Conference on the Environment (AMCEN, 2008). It articulates the essentials of the climate change challenge in the African context and highlights a number of key issues that need to be addressed to inform the formulation of appropriate policy responses by African governments with international stakeholder support. This paper concludes with a brief overview of specific actions UNEP initiated following the Monaco Forum (the ‘UNEP Monaco actions’) to support efforts by African governments to pursue the policy options offered in this document. The main thrust of the UNEP Monaco actions is to help build capacities and ease the costs and risks of financing climate change mitigation in developing countries, including those in Africa.