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Africa-wide Civil Society Climate Change Initiative for Policy Dialogues - ACCID
- News Digest - |
| Week ending 25 September 2009 |
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Nguesso: Congo can be part of the solution Boston Globe, 21 September 2009 Boston: Too often, Africa is regarded by industrialized nations as the world’s problem child, but on the critical issue of climate change my continent has the potential to be part of the solution. Africa not only has the lowest carbon footprint of any continent, but our natural resources contain a way out of the climate change catastrophe... Zoellick: Africa must be wary of climate The Citizen, 21 September 2009 Dar es Salaam: Even as it is becoming evident that Africa holds the potential to be a dynamic growth pole in the rapidly evolving world economy, the region needs to urgently tackle increased climate variability and temperature increases to maintain its performance and preserve recent gains, says a World Bank report released mid this week... Icrisat, global agencies sign Copenhagen Communiqué on climate change Business Mirror, 21 September 2009 London: Leading global institutions, including India-based International Crops Research Institute for the Semiarid Tropics (Icrisat), endorsed the Copenhagen Communiqué on climate change by signing the document. Dr. William Dar, Icrisat's director general, signed the communiqué along with the executives of more than 350 companies of all sizes and background... South Asia: Disunity hovers over a region battling climate change Inter Press Service, 21 September 2009 Kathmandu: As the Copenhagen Conference on climate change draws nearer, South Asia, which appears poised for severe threats from the impacts of climate change, faces a stiff challenge on two fronts. For one, South Asia’s member states - home to half the world's poor - need to convince the developed world to take steps toward the mitigation of future climate-related risks in the region... A bad climate for development The Economist, 21 September 2009 London: In late April Mostafa Rokonuzzaman, a farmer in south-western Bangladesh, gave an impassioned speech at a public meeting in his village, complaining that climate change, freakish hot spells and failed rains were ruining his vegetables. He didn't know the half of it. A month later Mr Rokonuzzaman was chest-deep in a flood that had swept away his house, farm and even the village where the meeting took place... Angola's agriculture ministry to launch tree planting campaign Macauhub, 22 September 2009 Luanda: Angola's Institute for Forestry Development (IDF) has announced that as of 2010 it plans to launch a nation-wide programme to plant new species of trees with a view to reforesting Angola... For trees, against monoculture Inter Press Service, 22 September 2009 Windhoek: Growing demand for products like timber and biofuels is putting pressure on shrinking rainforests. Large-scale tree planting on agricultural land can save those primary forests, agroforestry experts argue. But the new plantations are detrimental to biodiversity and indigenous people, critics respond... Lake Chad to receive water from Ubangui River, commission says Tripoli Post, 22 September 2009 Tripoli: Lake Chad in central Africa, which has lost 90 percent of its water because of climate change and population pressure, will receive water from the Ubangui River in the Congo Basin to boost levels, the Lake Chad Basin Commission said. The lake, which is surrounded by Chad, Cameroon, Niger and Nigeria, provides sustenance for the more than 30 million inhabitants of the basin... Experts to explore best emission control Business Day, 22 September 2009 Johannesburg: Tax analysts are at loggerheads over whether the [South African] government should use the “carrot” or the “stick” approach to get companies to reduce their carbon emissions... Govt, UNDP, NGOs seal pact on Nigeria's climate change action plan Guardian Newspaper, 22 September 2009 Lagos: A major stride towards stepping up Nigeria's fight against global climate change was recorded at the weekend in Abuja, with the coming together of four key climate players in the country to endorse a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the development of the nation's National Adaptation Strategy and Plan of Action... Green Economy Coalition to G-20: Match words with action Business Mirror, 22 September 2009 London: A new coalition of international business, trade unions, research and environmental organizations urged the Group of 20 nations (G-20) to make good their pledges to accelerate the transition to a green economy and secure a visionary global deal on climate change. The Green Economy Coalition warned in an open letter... EU climate proposal “unrealistic” SciDev.Net, 22 September 2009 Cape Town: An EU proposal to scale up climate change mitigation and adaptation funding for developing countries places unrealistic spending demands on poor countries, an African climate negotiator has said. The proposal, unveiled by the European Commission on 10 September, estimates that the cost of dealing with climate change in poor countries will reach € 100 billion (around US$146 billion) by 2020... Trees: Out of the forest and into the oven Inter Press Service, 24 September 2009 Uxbridge: Millions of trees, especially from the developing countries of the South, are being shipped to Europe and burned in giant furnaces to meet “green energy” requirements that are supposed to combat climate change. In the last two months alone, energy companies in Britain have announced the construction of at least six new biomass power generation plants to produce 1,200 megawatts of energy, primarily from burning woodchips... Global Witness: Liberia's forests do not need to be chopped down The Liberian Times, 24 September 2009 Monrovia: The Liberian Legislature has this week been asked to ratify four forest management contracts (FMCs). Problems with the bidding process that gave rise to these contracts have been given wide publicity over recent weeks; less well known is that Liberia has been offered financial compensation from its international partners not to log its forests, because of the value of Liberia's forests in mitigating global climate change... Zimbabwe: Indigenous seeds key to climate change adaptations The Herald, 24 September 2009 Harare: Zimbabwe could significantly reduce its vulnerability to the ravaging effects of climate change if it accords farmers the right to save, exchange and market indigenous seeds. The monopoly being enjoyed by commercial seed breeders has negatively impacted on farmers' potential to use indigenous seeds in adapting to climate change... Parliament collects signatures on Cameroon's position Cameroon Tribune, 24 September 2009 Yaounde: A four-day campaign to collect signatures on the country's position to be presented in the Copenhagen Climate Change UN conference is ongoing in Yaounde... South Africa softens tone on climate change Reuters, 24 September 2009 Cape Town: South Africa appears to have softened its stance on carbon emissions, saying on Wednesday it would support cuts to prevent global warming. The apparent change comes against the backdrop of international meetings designed to set targets to cut harmful emissions, and that have pitted poorer nations against Western countries on how best this could be achieved beyond 2012... OECD: Integrating ‘adaptation’ into development co-operation OECD/Inter Press Service, 24 September 2009 Brussels: Tackling climate change is perhaps the greatest environmental challenge we face today. If more ambitious policies are not introduced, the OECD projects world greenhouse gas emissions to increase by about 70% by 2050, with severe consequences: destructive sea level rise and storm surges, more frequent and intense heat waves, and agricultural yields declining in many parts of the world... FAO lists main challenges facing world agriculture Afrique en ligne, 25 September 2009 Rome: Producing 70 percent more food for an additional 2.3 billion people by 2050 while at the same time combating poverty and hunger are the main challenges world agriculture will face in the coming decades, the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) said. The UN organization said in order to upscale food production, farmers must learn to utilise scarce natural resources more efficiently and adapt to climate change... It's time for farmers to think about climate change The Madison Press, 24 September 2009 Madison: Brent Sohngen, professor of environmental economics at OSU said it best. “The U.S. is an economic powerhouse in ag,” he stated during a panel discussion on climate change and its effects on farming, economics and policy... China, South Korea lead in green stimulus investment Reuters, 24 September 2009 Washington: South Korea and China lead the world's 20 largest economies in the percentage of economic stimulus money they invest in environmental projects, the U.N. Environment Program reported on Thursday. Other members of the Group of 20 leading economic powers, including the United States, trail behind in percentage of green investment from stimulus money, the agency found... Women on front lines of climate week Inter Press Service, 24 September 2009 New York: Women's voices remain highly under-represented in the climate change debate, say international civil society leaders attending events taking place around the United Nations Climate Summit Tuesday. The summit was attended by 146 national delegations, of which only seven were headed by women... Reps lament Nigeria's posture on climate change Next, 25 September 2009 Abuja: The House of Representatives Committee on Climate Change has expressed dissatisfaction with the manner Nigeria is treating the issue of climate change, saying the absence of a definite policy on it could plunge the country into more problems... Senegal seeks UN backing for ‘Great Green Wall’ across Africa UN News Centre, 25 September 2009 New York: Senegal called for United Nations support for the “Great Green Wall” project in which African countries have agreed to plant trees in a band across the breadth of the continent to try to lessen the effects of desertification. President Abdoulaye Wade told the General Assembly's annual high-level debate that he wishes the UN will endorse the project, “which contributes to the protection of the environment,” help in the battle against climate change and would mobilize thousands of people... Cape Town releases 2010 Green Goal programme update Engineering News, 25 September 2009 Cape Town: Last week, the City of Cape Town launched the Green Goal progress report, a document that highlights the effort made by government to ensure that the 2010 FIFA World Cup is an environmentally responsible event and leaves a positive environmental legacy in the region... Kagame calls for inclusive approach on global issues The New Times, 25 September 2009 New York: President Paul Kagame put it to the UN General assembly that debates seeking solutions to global issues must not be a monopoly of a few nations, but should rather include poor countries, as they have valuable contributions to make... President Wade: From aid to accountability Washington Times, 25 September 2009 Washington: Last week I flew to Washington to sign the Obama administration's first Millennium Challenge Corporation grant to a foreign nation, a $540 million grant to my home country of Senegal. That grant will provide invaluable support for a host of infrastructure projects in Senegal - and I was honored to hear Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton cite Senegal as a “shining example of what a free market democracy can look like” in the developing world... President Mills addresses UN General Assembly Ghana Broadcasting Corporation, 25 September 2009 Accra: The President, Professor John Evans Atta Mills addressed the 64th U.N. General Assembly in New York, his first participation in deliberations at the U.N. since becoming President, President Mills called for more assistance for African countries in their fight against climate change, poverty, disease and illiteracy... |
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Africa-wide Civil Society Climate Change Initiative for Policy Dialogues - ACCID
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