Climate issues require clear policies

The climate change debate comes full circle for Africa today as African Climate ministers descend in Harare for a crucial meeting occasioned by severe weather and extreme climate events which are exacerbating multiple stresses such as food insecurity and spread of diseases on the continent.

View Point with Wisdom Mdzungairi

In 2012 alone, an estimated 37,3 million Africans were negatively affected by hydro-meteorological hazards; a 43,3% increase in annual average over the last decade.

So the meeting under the banner of African Ministerial Conference on Meteorology (Amcomet) should seek to intensify efforts to integrate weather and climate services in national and sub-regional development frameworks to save lives and improve the livelihoods of communities. No doubt a transformative approach is required to introduce innovative adaptation measures that build the resilience of communities to cope with adverse impacts of climate change.

Frankly, every African country should be involved in the transformative development of the continent hence for Zimbabwe the need to support weather and climate services is critical as it strengthens the country’s resilience against global warming.

To Environment, Water and Climate minister Saviour Kasukuwere, the Amcomet meeting is a landmark strategy designed to maximise the contribution of meteorological services to sustainable development.

Perhaps it is time to integrate the Meteorological Services with the Climate Change office in his ministry to avoid duplication of duties with the Transport ministry.

This meeting is coming at a time Zimbabwe has at least come up with a draft climate change policy, which may soon be ratified by Cabinet. This is a big step for the country, which has been lagging behind on this front.

It is therefore imperative for Zimbabwe to use this meeting as a springboard to increase the number of hydrological stations to efficiently observe and study the hydrological conditions of bodies of water and territories across the country.

The current number of hydrological stations locally is a far cry from the recommended figure by the World Meteorological Organisation for Zimbabwe.

Even at that, most of the stations have been destroyed by the previous successive floods hence the need to rehabilitate the affected stations as well as increase the density of the stations across the country.

The hydrological observation system should involve the systematic design and instrumentation of rivers and other water bodies to capture, on continuous basis, relevant hydrological data and parameters needed for planning, designing and execution of water resources development projects and infrastructure.

It must be noted that the development of the Implementation Plan under Amcomet is cardinal as it will improve the generation of climate information on the African continent.

Improved generation of climate information should enhance the capacity of the National and Hydro-Meteorological Services to explore the potential of Earth Observation technologies in monitoring droughts, floods, weather, climate, fisheries, rangelands, forests, as a tool for climate change adaptation and mitigation.

The Implementation Plan should also support climate change adaptation in the field of agriculture which contributes over 80% of rural livelihood needs and over 40% of GDP, not only in Zimbabwe, but the continent.

The Integrated Strategy was developed as a policy document to enhance the cooperation between African countries; and to ensure that National Meteorological and Hydrological Services have the capacity to fulfill their responsibilities including the implementation of the Global Framework for Climate Services.

This strategy identifies five key pillars for action namely -Increase political support and recognition of National Meteorological and Hydrological Services and related Regional Climate Centres; Enhance weather and climate service delivery for sustainable development; Improve access to meteorological services for in particular for Marine and Aviation Sectors; support the provision of weather and climate services for climate change adaptation and mitigation; and strengthen partnerships with relevant institutions and funding mechanisms.

Africa is arguably the most vulnerable continent susceptible to a wide range of climate change effects and it is already facing a decrease in food production, floods and inundation of coastal zones and deltas, as well as the spread of waterborne diseases and malaria.

But with the correct climate information, Zimbabwe in particular and Africa in general can help farmers to fine-tune their planting and marketing strategies based on seasonal climate forecasts, empower disaster risk managers to prepare more effectively for droughts and heavy precipitation, assist public health services to target vaccine and other prevention campaigns to limit climate-related disease outbreaks such as malaria and meningitis, and help improve the management of water resources.

It is clear that for the economy to develop our policies should dovetail from the country’s climate policy –a major reason why Zimbabwe badly needs one.

How it has escaped Zimbabwe’s mind that the climate change policy is a key factor in our development still boggles the mind. But there is still time given Amcomet has endorsed ‘Destination Zimbabwe’ at a time the country is yearning for international recognition.

By chairing Amcomet, that should incentivise Kasukuwere to push for the climate change policy before he hands over the baton to the next guy/lady. It must be noted that Amcomet is a high-level mechanism for the development of meteorology and its applications in Africa.

The Executive should be aware that climate issues just like water or our environment (peace and security) are security matters which require clear policies and political will for the benefit of the country.