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Experts seek common ground for Africa on climate-related security risks

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Experts seek common ground for Africa on climate-related security risks

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Nairobi, August 27 (Xinhua) — Experts from various countries held a meeting in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, on the 27th and reached a common position on climate-related security risks.

The three-day African Union forum aims to negotiate and develop a common African position on climate change, peace and security. More than 100 representatives from the AU, the United Nations and African countries gathered together to develop a unified approach to addressing the risks of climate change.

In his opening remarks, Aden Duale, Cabinet Secretary at Kenya’s Ministry of Environment, Climate Change and Forestry, noted that climate-related security risks act as a threat multiplier, exacerbating health, food and nutrition, water and energy insecurities across Africa.

“A common continental position will help bridge policy gaps, attract much-needed climate finance and strengthen our collective decision-making process on climate and security issues,” Douale said.

He added that prolonged droughts, devastating floods and storms had wreaked havoc, causing massive displacement, migration, death and loss of livelihoods, and undermining peace and security in Africa.

El Haji Sajjo Bah, director of conflict management at the AU Department of Political Affairs, Peace and Security, said the challenges posed by climate change to peace and security are beyond the capacity of any country or entity to respond.

Bach noted that common development and security issues would be best addressed through cooperation at the regional and continental levels.

The Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General to the AU and Head of the UN Office to the AU, Parfit Onanga-Anyanga, urged the region to develop a comprehensive continental strategy and share the most innovative climate adaptation approaches to manage shared resources.

Onanga-Anyanga revealed that although Africa is the continent least responsible for greenhouse gas emissions, it is the most vulnerable to climate-induced conflicts.

Mauritania’s permanent representative to the AU, Amr Mohammadi, said cooperation on the continent was crucial because climate change could redraw the distribution of water and other natural resources, exacerbating tensions and sparking new conflicts.

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