“To support the Pan Africa Agency of the Great Green Wall, the GGW Accelerator was created in 2021 to ensure more coordinated support to the member states, organisations and institutions of the GGW through a multi-player, structured, five-pillar approach. This article highlights the importance of co-constructing more accurate knowledge and developing processes to further GGW projects, in the light of these aims. It provides various examples of projects demonstrating the role of scientific research in implementing and achieving the goals of the GGW.”