CLIMATE – KMAUPDATES

May62020 by ShafiqNo Comments

Panic in Lake Victoria as Migingo Island Starts Sinking

AFRICA, CLIMATE, EAST AFRICA, KENYA, UGANDA

Over the past years, occupant of Migingo island in Lake Victoria have seen it all, from Ugandan troops invasion to attack from Lake animals. But what they are experiencing right now is by far the worst and it is making everybody worried. With the continued heavy rainfalls being experienced in the entire East African region, the level of lake water has risen to several meters above the initial level. With this increase in water quantity,lake Victoria has been characterized by unpredictable water patterns and strong wave currents. The worst hit victims of these changes has been with no doubt, the Migingo occupants. According to a source, all dhows which were docked at the shores of the island and of which as a matter of fact, the only means of transportation to and from the island ...

Apr292020 by ShafiqNo Comments

Coronavirus – Africa: COVID-19 lessons offer hope for global efforts to address climate change impacts

AFRICA, CLIMATE, CORONAVIRUS, HEALTH

Lessons learned from the global response to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic give positive signals on how the world can deal with the devastating impacts of climate change. In a new paper, the African Climate Policy Centre (ACPC) of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) says while momentum on climate action may be hampered by the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis, the way the world has responded to the pandemic may help the global response in dealing with the existential threat of climate change. Governments across the board have taken swift actions to deal with the pandemic, including financial stimulus and support packages, and there has been great solidarity between countries and between communities, the medical profession and the science community with data sharing and su...

Mar242020 by ShafiqNo Comments

Hope in China as new Covid-19 cases continue to drop

ASIA, CLIMATE, CORONAVIRUS, HEALTH, INTERNATIONAL, INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Authorities in China have confirmed that it had 78 new cases of Covid-19 on Monday, of the new cases, 74 were imported infections, up from 39 imported cases a day earlier. Hubei, the province at the center of the new coronavirus outbreak in China, announced that restrictions on Wuhan will be removed starting April 8, which would end a lock down that began on Jan. 23. Over the last five days, health authorities have reported only one new locally transmitted case of Covid-19 – a patient in Guangdong province infected by someone traveling from abroad. In Wuhan, the center of the outbreak and the country’s worst-hit area, officials on Monday reported a fifth day without new cases. Business in China is slowly returning to normal The Chinese capital was the hardest-hit, with a reco...

Mar72020 by ShafiqNo Comments

BREAKING: Africa Climate Week in Kampala delayed over Coronavirus.

AFRICA, CLIMATE, UGANDA

KAMPALA – The United Nations Climate Change secretariat, in close collaboration with all the other organizing partners, has decided to put Africa Climate Week in Kampala on hold. This is to ensure the health and safety of all participants in light of the Coronavirus (COVID-19). Organizers said that the meeting, which was planned to take place 20 to 24 April 2020, is only postponed and not canceled, and will take place at a later time that has yet to be determined. The Ministry of Health of Uganda has issued guidance that arrivals in Uganda from the most affected countries will be held quarantine in government hospitals if they display symptoms, or will be placed in self-isolation for 14 days if they do not display symptoms. In light of this, the United Nations Department ...

Mar22020 by ShafiqNo Comments

AFRICA: We must not jeopardize Africa’s future in the name of fighting Climate Change.

AFRICA, CLIMATE

Pressure is building to phase out fossil fuels in Africa to fight climate change. Organizations ranging from the World Bank to the European Investment Bank (EIB) have dropped support for African fossil fuel production in hopes of encouraging a transition from oil, gas and coal to sustainable energy sources like wind and solar power. Now there are legitimate concerns that investor support for oil and gas production will dwindle as well. Blackrock, which controls $7 trillion in investments, and the Royal Bank of Scotland have said they’ll be moving away from investments that support fossil fuel production. The anti-fossil fuel fervor is being demonstrated in what may seem like surprising ways: the Bank of England was criticized for having an oil company executive its boa...

Feb132020 by ShafiqNo Comments

WORLD: UN launches world’s biggest survey of public opinion on climate change.

CLIMATE, UNITED NATIONS, WORLD

Today, celebrities and youth activists met with UN officials, governments and civil society to launch Mission 1.5, a campaign that aims to bridge the gap between people and governments on ambitious climate action. Mission 1.5 aims to give 20 million people around the world the opportunity to have their say on ways to limit climate change that they want to see adopted by government leaders. The campaign, led by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), hopes to address the disconnect between citizens and governments that has seen a groundswell of public opinion by citizens around the world, including school strikes and mass protests. The campaign is built around an internet and mobile-based video game, developed by UNDP alongside experts in game develop...

Feb62020 by ShafiqNo Comments

ASIA: Climate change threatens chilli harvest in Pakistan.

ASIA, CLIMATE, FEATURE STORIES

The chili industry in Southern Pakistan risk destruction due to climate change. Farmers in Sunri suffered a 40 percent drop in production last year due to scorching temperatures and lack of rain. Mian Muhammad Saleem is the President of the Red Chilli Growers’ Association. In 2019 we have produced only 70 to 80,000 tons of red chilli crops. “We yielded 50 percent more red chillies this year than we harvested in 2017-18, but unfortunately overall production of red chillies has gone down in 2019 and it made impact on the price of chillies and its rates doubled. We have produced 125,000 tons of red chilli crops in 2018, and in 2019 we have produced only 70 to 80,000 tons of red chilli crops”, Saleem said. Saleem says its time for the government step in to help. “The ...

Feb12020 by ShafiqNo Comments

SOUTH AFRICA: Activists call for government to declare climate emergency.

AFRICA, CLIMATE, South Africa

About 50 activists, led by Extinction Rebellion, picketed outside the Gauteng Legislature in Central Johannesburg on Friday afternoon. They called on government to declare a climate emergency. Some people were holding posters which read: “Greed kills our world”, “Tomorrow is too late”, “Capitalism is the problem” and “No action, no future”. Sunny Morgan, coordinator for Gauteng Extinction Rebellion, told GroundUp that the march was part of a larger campaign to speak the truth about climate change and ensure that the future of the country is in the hands of responsible people. Government must declare a climate emergency The demands were for government to declare a climate emergency, act immediately to halt biodiversity loss, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions throug...

Jan312020 by ShafiqNo Comments

FEATURE STORIES: Africa Climate Week in Kampala dates shifted.

AFRICA, CLIMATE, FEATURE STORIES

In consultation with the secretariat of UN Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Government of Uganda has decided to move the dates of the upcoming Africa Climate Week to 20 to 24 April 2020. A statement released by organisers indicates that the new dates take advantage of the G77 Heads of State and Government Summit being held at the same venue from 17 to 19 April and will facilitate the participation of Ministers and high-level stakeholders. The event in Kampala, at the Speke Resort Munyonyo, Conference Centre, will be the first Regional Climate Week to be hosted this year and will be followed by Climate Weeks in the Asia-Pacific (AP), Latin America and Caribbean (LAC), and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) regions. The central objective of Africa Climate Week is to share...