greenhouse gas emissions - The African Mirror

Mar

2024

Africa to be $2.5 trillion short of climate finance by 2030, UN says

AFRICA will be $2.5 trillion short of the finance it needs to cope with climate change by 2030, a U.N. official said, adding that the continent has contributed the least to greenhouse gas emissions while seeing some of the worst impacts. Africa attracts only 2% of global investments in clean energy but needs $2.8 trillion of investment in the sector by 2030, United Nations Economic Commission for Africa chief economist Hanan Morsy told a conference in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, warning against the consequences of under-funding. "We end up in a vicious circle with investment shortfalls increasing exposure risk and worsening…

Dec

2023

By The African Mirror

Climate action for Africa in 2023: three big developments

ENVIRONMENT

2023 is highly likely to be the hottest year ever recorded. And climate change is to blame for one-quarter of the global population being exposed to dangerous levels of extreme heat. We need signs that countries are taking steps to address this. Specifically, we need climate action that helps us adapt and that cuts greenhouse gas emissions, if we want to minimise the escalating losses and damages from climate change. NICHOLAS P. SIMPSON, Senior Research Fellow, Climate and Sustainability, ODI, Overseas Development Institute This year, there were three developments across Africa which highlight a mix of progress, priorities and potential…

Nov

2022

By The African Mirror

COP27 must work out how to cut carbon and still develop African economies

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

AVERTING a climate disaster without compromising economic growth and development is a key issue for African countries. Energy production and use is the single biggest contributor to global warming, accounting for roughly two-thirds of human-induced greenhouse gas emissions. Yet, electricity use and access are strongly correlated with economic development. Many African countries are lagging behind in electricity generation and access. According to the Energy Progress Report, in 2020 the 20 countries with the lowest rates of access to electricity were all in sub-Saharan Africa. For example, just 7% of the population in South Sudan and 11% of the population in…

Apr

2022

By The African Mirror

African cities can do more to protect children from climate change

AFRICITIES

SIX in 10 people will be living in cities by 2030. This is concerning. Cities are responsible for over 70% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Yet cities can also do a lot to mitigate climate change and help people adapt to its impacts. Cities can use renewable energy sources, promote greener transport, and get industries to cut pollution and adopt cleaner production techniques. Also, they can form or use existing networks and partnerships to strengthen these efforts. Author RONGEDZAYI FAMBASAYI, Doctoral Researcher: Faculty of Law, North-West University Almost 1 billion children – nearly half of the world’s children – live…

Jul

2021

By The African Mirror

COVID-19 crisis has lead to food crisis, says Italy’s Draghi

WORLD

THE world must ensure access to food supplies as forcefully as it moved to ensure access to vaccines, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi said at the opening of the United Nations Food Systems Pre-Summit in Rome. "The health crisis (COVID-19) has lead to a food crisis," he said, citing data showing malnutrition in all its forms has become the leading cause of ill health and death in the world. The U.N.'s first-ever Food Systems Summit will take place in September, with the aim of delivering progress on the body's 2030 sustainable development goals. According to the latest U.N. data, the…

Apr

2021

By The African Mirror

World leaders commit to gas emissions target

WORLD

JEFF MASON and VALERIE VOLCOVICI THE United States yesterday pledged at a global climate summit hosted by President Joe Biden to slash greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2030, a target it hopes will spark other big countries to raise their ambition to combat global warming. The United States, the world's second-leading emitter after China, seeks to reclaim global leadership in the fight against global warming after former President Donald Trump withdrew the country from international efforts to cut emissions. Biden unveiled the goal to cut emissions by 50%-52% from 2005 levels at the start of a two-day climate summit…

Mar

2021

By The African Mirror

S.Africa proposes reduced 2030 greenhouse gas emission targets

ENVIRONMENT

SOUTH Africa's government has released a revised climate change policy document for public comment, significantly reducing the upper limit target for harmful carbon emissions seen over the next decade, senior officials said. The draft Nationally Determined Contribution document, which updates a previous 2015 study, outlines the mitigation, adaptation and financing policies Africa's worst polluter and most industrialised country will pursue. Once finalised, the NDC will be deposited at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change before November. A key new policy proposal shows that greenhouse gas emission targets will likely be in a range of 398 million tonnes of…

Nov

2020

By The African Mirror

As Cape Town races to save water, risk of ‘Day Zero’ drought seen rising

ENVIRONMENT

KIM HARRISBERG CAPE TOWN faces an 80% higher chance of another 'Day Zero' drought by the end of the century if greenhouse gas emissions keep rising at current rates, research showed on Monday, as the South African city races to safeguard water supplies. Following a 2018 drought in South Africa that nearly caused Cape Town's taps to run dry, known as Day Zero, officials have been working to avert further water crises that could put lives at risk and destroy livelihoods in the coming years. Using new high-resolution simulations, researchers from Stanford University and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration…