Hot!News

Global dialogue on climate change response measures underway in Accra

The Second Lady, Mrs Sami­ra Bawumia, has called for a com­prehensive assess­ment to understand and gauge the impacts of climate change in the country.

This, she said would ensure poli­cies were inclusive and consider the needs of vulnerable populations.

Mrs Bawumia said the results of such assessment should be expressed in the ongoing updates of the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).

NDCs are commitments coun­tries make to reduce their green­house gas emissions as part of climate change mitigation.

The Second Lady said this yesterday in a speech read on her behalf by the Executive Director of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Dr John Kingsley Krugu at a two-day global dialogue on the Impacts of the Imple­mentation of Response Measures ongoing in Accra.

The dialogue which is the first of its kind to be held in conjunc­tion with the 11th meeting of the Katowice Committee on Impacts (KCI) brought together 40 participants from 34 countries.

It was aimed at maximising the co-benefits and minimising the negative impacts of implementing NDCs.

Mrs Samira Bawumia said recent data shows that Africa bears a dispro­portionate burden of climate change, even though it contributes the least to global emissions.

She said the impacts of climate change on the continent continue to worsen with each passing day.

“Despite having access to cutting-edge technology, improved policies, and increased funding, we still seem powerless. Our people continue to face the harsh realities of climate change in their daily lives, from the challenges of farm­ing to simple tasks like fetching water,” she said.

She said Ghana was also witnessing the impacts of climate change, stating that it was experi­encing delayed rains and the worst drought in the northern parts in decades.

She said the government of Ghana had allocated GH¢8 billion ($500 million) from the national emergency fund to finance an agriculture support scheme to alle­viate the plight of farmers affected by dry weather and ensure food security.

She said women and children were among the most vulnerable to bear the impacts of climate change.

According to the Second Lady, action taken to minimise the future impact of climate change directly or indirectly impact the policies of already climate-vulnerable coun­tries like Ghana.

She said conscious efforts to mitigate the negative effects cli­mate change could potentially wid­en the inequality levels in societies and continents and further widen the developmental gaps in other areas of life.

She was of the view that a clear understanding and transparent reporting of these impacts could help plan for a just transition that lessens the gross impacts of reset­ting the economy.

The Subsidiary Body for Sci­entific and Technological Advice (SBSTA) Chair, Hendrik Hubert Joseph Vreuls, said “we are at a critical juncture where taking actions to address climate change is no more a choice and the inter­section of climate change and sustainable development makes the dialogue essential to navigate the social, economic and environmen­tal impacts of response measures,” he added.

 BY JEMIMA ESINAM KUAT­SINU

Show More
Back to top button