ADDIS ABABA-The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the African Union Commission, jointly announced the continent Africa needs urgent and increased investment in climate adaptation and resilience.
Launching the 2023 State of the Climate in Africa report in Cote de Ivory, the three giant institutions reveled that African countries are facing an escalating climate change bill, with an average loss of 2-5% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) due to climate extremes, according to the UN Economic Commission for Africa-ECA’s statement sent to The Ethiopian Herald.
“In Africa, the cost of adaptation is estimated to be between 30-50 billion USD annually over the next decade, representing 2-3% of the region’s GDP,” the statement shows.
Speaking t the launching of the yearly report, several African authorities also urged international environmentalist institutions to give due attention to the crisis, it was stated.
“Africa is uniquely vulnerable to climate change, with its high dependence on rain-fed agriculture and limited adaptive capacity. Rising temperatures, rising sea levels, and erratic rainfall are already causing widespread harm to human health, ecosystems, and livelihood. These challenges threaten to derail Africa’s big-bed progress towards achieving the sustainable development goals and the African Union agenda 2063”, stated the Minister of Green Economy and Environment of Zambia.
Africa faces disproportionate burdens and risks from climate change, which threatens food security, public health, and socio-economic development across the continent,” also said Ambassador Josefa Leonel Correia Sacko, Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy, and Sustainable Environment at the African Union Commission.
Deputy Executive Secretary and Chief Economist at the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), Hanan Morsy on his part added that Africa is on the front lines of fighting climate change and its impacts, from rising temperatures to shifting rainfall patterns, and other extreme weather events.
Key sectors like the agricultural sector, which employs over 60% of Africa’s population, are under threat. Crops are failing and livestock is suffering as climate variability disrupts traditional farming practices, jeopardizes food supply, and the economic stability of nations, which are already grappling with high poverty and levels, he noted.
The 2023 State of the Climate in Africa report is expected to serve as a vital tool for policymakers, providing the observational basis necessary to drive action and support decision-making in the face of an increasingly challenging climate future, according to ECA’s statement.
BY STAFF REPORTER
THE ETHIOPIAN HERALD WEDNESDAY 4 SEPTEMBER 2024
