Mozambique advocates the creation of an African Union action program aimed at combating climate change, in light of the Paris Agreement, which is the United Nations Framework Convention on the phenomenon.
The fact was advanced yesterday by the President of the Republic, Filipe Nyusi, speaking from Maputo, at the meeting of the Peace and Security Council of the African Union, which took place in a virtual way due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
For the Head of State, there is enough evidence that climate change, whose effects affect more poor nations such as those in Africa, are a reflection of the unbridled exploitation of natural resources.
At the same session, Filipe Nyusi recalled that the country will soon host a regional center for humanitarian assistance to victims of climate change effects from the Southern African Development Community (SADC).
According to the explanation of President Nyusi, who is currently the acting president of SADC, although it is understood that the best approach, facing the effects of climate change, is prevention, the center is born to help the region to mitigate the suffering of the population, which is often forced to move from one point to another due to phenomena such as floods, droughts, among others.
The center will be located in Nacala city, Nampula province, a strategic region for SADC, given the existence of a deep water port, international airport, railway corridor, among other infrastructures.
The president of the AU Peace and Security Council this March, Kenyan statesman Uhuru Kenyatta, advocated a more energetic continental action against climate change, even proposing African solutions to local problems.
He made it clear that changes in the behavior of the climate, which are manifested by irregularity of rainfall and drought, multiplicity of cyclones, among other anomalies, require sustainable management of natural resources and are behind many conflicts on the continent and humanitarian disasters.
He called on the continent’s countries to engage in climate change mitigation as a means of restoring peace and security conducive to Africa’s economic development.
For his part, AU Commission Chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat said that climate change is the main threat to development as drought and pests destroy agricultural crops and affect livestock.
He also said that it creates conflicts between herders and farmers, making the environment prone to terrorism.
He advocated the sharing of experiences between member states as a way to reduce the impacts and to agree on a common continental position for the annual UN summit on climate change.
