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ADDIS-ABABA, Aug. 12 (Xinhua) – The African Union (AU) on Monday urged its member countries to accelerate the integrated implementation of all existing international and regional commitments to mitigate the adverse effects of climate change.
The Peace and Security Council of the AU launched this appeal in a statement issued Monday following the last Council meeting held at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa. , capital of Ethiopia, on the theme "Natural and other disasters in Africa: beyond normative frameworks". "
"Natural disasters and climate change contribute to exacerbating existing tensions between communities, threatening the availability and access to vital resources and disproportionately affecting the most vulnerable," said the UN Peace and Security Council. AU in a statement released Monday.
AU figures have revealed that about 90% of natural disasters in sub-Saharan Africa are weather and climate related, affecting the economic output of countries by 10 to 20%.
Noting that it was "urgent for AU Member States to strengthen measures to combat the effects of climate change, environmental degradation and natural disasters", the Council also urged African governments to give special importance to effective measures to combat climate change in conflict-affected areas.
He also urged African countries to "redouble efforts to prevent, manage and resolve conflicts as part of the African Union's solemn declaration to silence guns in Africa". here to 2020 ".
He further called on "all African countries to accelerate the integrated implementation of all existing international and regional climate change mitigation commitments and agreements".
According to the AU, key international and regional climate change commitments include the Paris Agreement, the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer and the Sendai Framework for Climate Change. disaster risk reduction (2015-2030) and its four priority areas for action. prevent new risks and reduce existing disaster risks.
He also focused on the need to understand disaster risk, strengthen disaster risk management, invest in disaster prevention to improve their resilience, as well as to improve disaster preparedness for an effective response.
The 55-member pan-African bloc also urged its African member countries to put in place "effective early warning mechanisms in the event of a natural disaster".
It also recommended the establishment of 24-hour command centers to closely monitor and launch early warnings of imminent natural disasters, with a view to further strengthening national preparedness and capabilities for disaster management. disaster risk.
Urgent coordinated efforts at national, regional and continental levels are also considered essential for planning and responding to potential natural disasters across the continent.
The Council also emphasized the need to speed up the commissioning of the African Humanitarian Agency (AfHA) to support AU member countries in disaster risk preparedness and management. .
Noting the importance of guaranteed sustainable financing for the effects of climate change on the continent, the AU also commended countries that have already put in place special funding for natural disaster response.
He also called on other countries, which have not yet done so, to put in place special funding mechanisms to effectively fund disaster risk reduction efforts.
The Council also called on its development partners in particular and the international community at large to strengthen their support for the African Union's efforts to address natural disasters in Africa.
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