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Protecting Africa's Common Future From Impacts of Climate Change |
The recently concluded Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Uganda served as an important international event to amplify the message on African perspective on the issues on climate change, and the support the need to adapt their societies and economies to cope with the extreme challenges arising from climate effects. A Ministerial Round table on climate change was organized from 6-17 November 2007 in Jinja, Uganda.
The objective of the round table was to consolidate the African perspective on Climate change and water by African Ministers, and consequently have CHOGM to discuss and prioritize climate related water initiatives at different levels by different sectors and actors. This included:
• Impacts of climate change; Coping with water, food and energy demands;
• Imperative for cooperation from households to national and transboundary levels. The majority of African freshwater resources are transboundary. This requires cooperation and regional planning, decision-making, policy, legal & regulatory support and joint implementation.
• Efficient use of limited finances to meet structural and non-structural investments to cope with climate effects
Panel Discussions focused on:
i. Making Africa’s development climate proof.
ii. Continent-wide strategy for greater engagement on the part of Africa’s political leadership and decision-makers.
iii. Climate Change and the future of Africa’s lake and River Basins.
iv. Preparing for the 2009 International Event on Climate Change (meeting of the Parties to the UN Framework on Climate Change, Denmark, 2009); Towards a Pan African Decision-Makers Conference on adaptation to climate change, (Kampala, Uganda 2008).
v. Key Issues relating to Africa on the 4th Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
vi. Disaster Risks Reduction and Climate Change
vii. Key Issues in the outcomes of the United Nations General Assembly High level Event on Climate Change (New York 2007).
Viii. Africa’s Common Perspectives as reflected in major decisions of the African Union, the Commonwealth and other Pan Africa Ministerial bodies (African Ministers Council on Water, Forum for African Ministers on Energy, African Ministerial Conference on the Environment, African Ministers Council on Science and Technology).
Transboundary water cooperation offers immense opportunities in reducing the vulnerability of each country to adverse climate impacts. Nile basin Initiative Programs are naturally very informed resource centers with expertise on the issue.
The round table was initiated by the African Ministerial Conference on Water (AMCOW), hosted by Hon. Maria Mutagamba; the Minister for Water and Environment, Uganda
Source: Global Water Partnership, Eastern Africa.
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