African countries are among the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Like many parts of the world, the continent is experiencing some of the most extreme weather patterns on record.
It has been hit by droughts, floods, intense rains to heat waves. The continent suffered an estimated $8.5 billion in economic damages due to climate change in 2022, with more than 110 million people on the continent directly affected by weather, climate, and water-related hazards.
The rate of global warming has been faster in North Africa, which has been engulfed by intense heat causing wildfires in Algeria and Tunisia.
Kenya, Ethiopia, and Somalia were heavily impacted in the Horn of Africa region, which saw its worst drought in 40 years.
Climate change experts believe that greenhouse gases from human activities such as burning fossil fuels and generating electricity have contributed significantly to these hazards.
Africa is responsible for less than 4% of the world’s carbon emissions, according to the United Nations. Africa’s vulnerability is driven by a range of factors including weak adaptive capacity and less developed agricultural production systems.
Africa’s first climate change summit was recently held in Kenya’s capital Nairobi to address the increasing impacts of climate change as well as demand stronger action by world major polluters.
The event represented a critical political milestone for demonstrating that there is a collective global will to accelerate the pace and scale of a just transition to a more equitable renewable-energy-based, climate-resilient global economy.
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