While addressing the 10th senior Policy seminar held at UN-ECA on Monday organized under the theme "Climate change and economic development in sub Saharan Africa," deputy executive secretary UN-ECA , Lalla Ben Barka said although Africa contributes only about 3.8 percent of the total green house gas emissions, its countries are among the most vulnerable in the world.

“We no longer need any additional evidence on the reality of climate change and the severity of its impact,” she said.

She said in sub Saharan Africa countries climate change has adverse effect on water resource, food security, energy, health and other humanistic issue.

Africa is at high risk because of the region's physical sensitivity to climate change, and its low adaptive capacity, which seriously compound the challenges of meeting the MDGs and achieving sustainable development.

Executive Director of the African Economic Research Consortium (AERC) Prof. William Lyakuewa on his part said though Africa is climate dependant as it relies primarily on rain fed economy, climate change is a matter of survival.

The ever increasing of population and expansion of agricultural activities in Africa has damaged the resource of the continent, he said, and added the climate change would aggravate the situation in the continent.

Climate change is melting the piles of snow at Kilimanjaro Mountain and is changing the climate.

Flooding in different parts of the continent is a manifestation of the climate change in Africa, he said, and stressed that African nation should address the problem in their own policies.

The meeting would deliberate on the physical, socioeconomic and global impact of climate change with reference to sub Saharan Africa and is particularly relevant for poverty reduction measurers.

The three day meeting was co-organized by the Nairobi -based AERC and attracted 70 African policy makers and advisors drawn from the highest levels of government representing 25 countries in the continent.

R: 3:00-3:30 PM

E: 3:44-3:57

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