The 28th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 28) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) will convene from November 30 to December 12, 2023, in Dubai. It takes place at a time when the planet is “on fire” due to record-high temperatures and frequent and extreme weather events like floods and droughts. The impacts of climate change are being experienced in many African countries despite the continent’s negligible contribution to global warming.
In Somalia, for example, the
impacts of climate change cause billions of dollars in damage to
infrastructure, reduced food security, loss of shelter, health threats, loss of
livelihoods, and loss of life. Climate change causes internal displacement of
communities, conflict as people scramble for scarce resources like food and
water, and migration. For instance, climate change has resulted in the
displacement of at least 7.4 million people across Africa and 2 million in Somalia
alone. This information is based on an analysis of data from the Internal
Displacement Monitoring Centre in 2022.
Loss and damage have been defined as the impacts of climate change which are not avoided
by mitigation, adaptation and other measures such as disaster risk management.
It has both economic and non-economic costs and results from both extreme
weather events like hurricanes and floods and slow onset climatic processes
such as sea level rise, glacial retreat and ocean salinization. Loss and damage
include permanent and irreversible losses to lives, livelihoods, homes and
territory, for which an economic value can be calculated. It also generates
non-economic impacts, such as the loss of culture, identity, ecosystem services
and biodiversity, which cannot be quantified in monetary terms. Losses and
damages caused by climate change are a growing global concern, with vulnerable
communities and ecosystems being disproportionately affected.
The State of the Climate in
Africa 2022 report shows that the rate of temperature increase in Africa has
accelerated in recent decades, with weather- and climate-related hazards
becoming more severe. However, financing for climate adaptation is only a drop
in the ocean of what is needed. More than 110 million people on the continent
were directly affected by weather, climate, and water-related hazards in 2022,
causing more than US$ 8.5 billion in economic damages. There were a reported
5,000 fatalities, of which 48% were associated with drought and 43% were
associated with flooding, according to the Emergency Event Database. The true
toll is likely to be much higher because of under-reporting
(https://reliefweb.int/report/world/africa-suffers-disproportionately-climatechange#:~:text=More%20than%20110%20million%20people,8.5%20billion%20in%20economic%20damages
.)
The loss and damage costs in Africa due to climate change
are projected to range between US$ 290 billion and US$ 440 billion, depending
on the degree of warming, according to the UNECA’s African Climate Policy
Centre. The IPCC’s 6th Assessment Report (Africa chapter) concluded across
nearly all African countries, GDP per capita is projected to be at least 5%
higher by 2050 and 10–20% higher by 2100 if global warming is held to 1.5°C
compared with 2°C (which in return means economic losses would be much higher
at levels above 1.5°C warming). https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/syr/
Despite this pressing urgency and an undeniable need for
financial support, no established mechanism exists to provide the funds
necessary to tackle loss and damage.
As we begin our journey to COP28, we call on decision-makers
at COP 28 to heed the demands of the Loss and Damage Youth Coalition. We urge
you to stand up for climate justice by agreeing to the following: