By Nneka Nwogwugwu
The State of the Climate in Africa 2021 reveals that rainfall patterns are disrupted, glaciers are disappearing and key lakes are shrinking.
The worsening crisis and looming famine in the drought-stricken Horn of Africa shows how climate change can exacerbate water shocks, threatening the lives of hundreds of thousands of people and destabiliizing communities, countries and entire regions,” said WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas.
The report shows how extreme weather and climate change are undermining human health and safety, food and water security, and socio-economic development.
While Africa accounts for only about two to three per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, it suffers disproportionately from it.
Currently only 40 per cent of the African population has access to early warning systems against extreme weather and climate change impacts.
At the request of Secretary-General António Guterres, WMO is spearheading a campaign to ensure universal access to early warnings in the next five years.
More than 40 African States have revised their national climate plans to make them more ambitious and add greater commitments to climate adaptation and mitigation.
With a special focus on water, The State of the Climate reveals that high water stress is estimated to affect about 250 million people on the continent and displace up to 700 million individuals by 2030.
Four out of five African countries are unlikely to have sustainably managed water resources by 2030.
