Adverse effects of climate change on African peoples

William Ruto, President of Kenyan, spoke at the United Nations Climate Change Conference COP 27, saying the Catastrophic impacts of climate change are a “Living nightmare” for African people.

The president said, “Africa accounts for less than three percent of the pollution responsible for climate change. However, here the impact of climate change is serious.

On behalf of the African negotiating team, Ruto added that erosion and damage are not abstract topics for endless dialogue. This is our daily experience and a nightmare for millions of Kenyans and billions of people in Africa. 2.5 million cattle have died in Kenya this year alone.

Because of this, more than one and a half billion dollars in economic losses have occurred. The worst drought in the last 40 years has engulfed Kenya and the greater Horn of Africa region, putting millions of people at risk of starvation. Furthermore, the United Nations has warned that Somalia is on the brink of famine for the second time in a decade.”

Sameh Shoukry, Egypt’s Foreign Minister and President of COP-27, said, “The compensation that developing countries affected by climate change demand from rich countries is on the agenda.

The opportunity for formal discussion on climate fund formation has been created, but compensation has not been guaranteed at this conference.”

At the opening session, COP-27 officials called on governments to continue efforts to tackle climate change despite the economic and energy crisis caused by the Ukraine war and the coronavirus pandemic.

Experts say that carbon emissions must be cut by 45 percent by 2030 to keep global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above late 19th-century levels.

However, recently published data shows that carbon emissions have increased by 10 percent and global warming by 2.8 degrees Celsius in the past decade.

Notably, Xi Jinping, the leader of China, the world’s largest carbon emitter, has not attended the COP-27.