Community outreach motivates Timeabu farmers to appreciate the business of farming

Farmers at Timeabu are excited at opportunities to improve their levels of production and productivity, following a community outreach program spearheaded by the Centre for Climate Change and Food Security (CCCFS), a not-for-profit organization.
 

The predominantly cocoa production community in the Ejisu-Juabeng Municipality of Ashanti region has in years past experienced challenges in accessing information and farm inputs to enhance their cocoa operations.

“We don’t even know which district is responsible for the marketing of our cocoa produce,” lamented local chief farmer, Mohammed Haruna.

Other production challenges faced by the over 100 farmers include erratic supply of pesticides, access to improved seedlings, poor marketing systems and upholding best agronomic practices.

The community outreach event offered a platform for the farmers to get their challenges addressed whilst shaping other perceptions and practices that impede higher production.

CCCFS engaged cocoa and agricultural officers to sensitize and help address the concerns of the farmers – some of the farmers had instant solutions to their issues, whilst others received assurance of a short-term intervention.

A Senior Research Officer at the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), Fuad Abubakar, encouraged the farmers to desist from over- reliance on government for support but invest in their farming as a business.

"Treat it as any business venture and give it the all attention it needs. Surely, it will pay you back," he emphasized.

Mr. Abubakar said the farmers can position themselves to reap higher returns if they see their venture as any private business entity.

Bekwai District Cocoa Officer, Abednagao Asante, commended CCCFS for the initiative and promised to make available requested inputs by the farmers.

He acknowledged his responsibility to help turn around the fortunes of the farmers.

The farmers, at the end of the session, expressed renewed hope to turn round their fortunes with increased production in the seasons ahead.

"We promise ourselves that this will be the time for us to make farming a real business. We also promise to get better organized, and budget our time and money better on farming," said one of the farmers.

The Timeabu community is also challenged with access to electricity and teachers to handle the only primary school in the area, a situation they appeal for government’s support.

A stream, serving as the main source of drinking water for the community, has also been polluted from upstream as a result of illegal mining activities.

Board Member of the Centre for Climate Change and Food Security, Kofi Adu Domfeh, cautioned the farmers against giving away their farmlands for artisanal mining purposes if they are to be financially and environmentally secured.

“Don’t be lured to sell your lands for galamsey,” he said. “Yes, you may reap the benefit now but the real consequences of the activities may stay for ages; our lands, trees and water bodies are under threat of extinction and we need to secure the future for the next generation.”

Mr. Domfeh shared his experience from other countries where farmer cooperatives thrive and enjoined the local farmers to join forces to get issues addressed collectively.

CCCFS has committed to take the community outreach program to other deprived farming communities in Ghana.

The Centre’s goal is to empower depressed farming economies to be among the resolution-makers determined to make a difference for improved livelihoods.

 

CCCFS has other uniquely designed programs to promote environmental and climate change awareness in schools, and promote farming as a lucrative venture for young people.

These include ‘Food for Africa’, which involves a group of agriculture enthusiasts across Africa and beyond sharing ideas on a common platform to promote food production.

The centre also runs the ‘Young Aspiring African Farmers’ initiative.

African non-state actors tasked to be partners in national climate actions

African interest groups in the climate change discourse have welcomed the progress made at the last United Nations climate negotiations in Marrakech, Morocco for developing the pathway for implementation of the Paris Agreement.

There is however a call on African non-state actors to enhance cooperation and partnerships with African governments and development partners to intensify national climate actions in the implementation of the Paris Agreement.

At COP22 in Marrakech, Morocco in 2016, countries of the world demonstrated commitment for shifting the focus from negotiation to implementation of the provisions of the Paris Agreement.

Due to this reality, COP22 focused on how to make Paris agreement work by setting up mechanisms and structures that would facilitate its implementation.

Dubbed ‘COP of Action’, the Marrakech Climate Change Conference affirmed the trajectory the global leaders seek to follow in the climate-constrained world when they launched the Marrakech partnership for global climate action, coming on the backdrop on rapid ratification which saw the Agreement coming into force earlier than anticipated.

The Pan African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA) hosted a regional consultative forum on Post-Marrakech and the implementation of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change in Kampala, Uganda, from April 19–22, 2017.

The consultation brought together participants from civil society, private sector, regional institutions such as United Nations Economic Commission for Africa and the Pan-African Parliament, youth and women representatives. 

The participants underscored the remarkable effort of PACJA in the coordination of CSO climate change policy processes and interventions across Africa with focused reflection and coordinated review of the climate change conference – COP 22 Marrakech – outcome and Paris Agreement regime.

The forum upheld the continent’s conviction of moving from commitment to action with Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) demonstrated by ratifying the Paris Agreement and its subsequent entry into force.

Participants expressed deep concern about “the continuous neglecting of adaptation needs of developing countries and inadequate levels of public climate finance, limited access to adaptation finance such demonstrated by the imbalance between financing of mitigation and adaptation within the Green Climate Fund”.

Concerns were also raised about the interference by developed countries on the African-led process of operationalizing the Africa Renewable Energy Initiative.

The forum called upon the Pan-African Parliament to strengthen the work of the African Climate Change Legislative Initiative by supporting countries to develop and implement climate change legislations as part of action to enhance implementation of the Paris Agreement.

The meeting acknowledging the continued efforts to enhance the gender agenda within the climate change discourse and the championing of youth engagement.

Participants also acknowledged the continued partnership with the African Group of Negotiators, Africa Ministerial Committee on Environment (AMCEN), Committee of African Heads of State and Government on Climate Change (CAHOSCC) and United Nations Economic Commission for Africa.

Climate Change will see terrorism thrive: Report

A new report has found that the complex risks arising from climate change, fragility and conflict can contribute to the emergence and growth of terrorist groups, like Boko Haram and ISIL.

The new report: “Insurgency, Terrorism and Organised Crime in a Warming World”, by Berlin-based think tank, Adelphi, found that climate change multiplies and interacts with existing threats, risks and pressures, like resource scarcity, population growth and urbanization.

Report author, Lukas Rüttinger, said these factors together could lead to fragility and violent conflict in which these groups can thrive.

“Already vulnerable areas could get pulled into a vicious cycle, leading to the rise of terrorist groups who will find it easier to operate, with consequences for us all,” Rüttinger said.

Terrorist groups are increasingly using natural resources – such as water – as a weapon of war, controlling access to it, further compounding and exacerbating resource scarcities. The scarcer resources become, the more power is given to those who control them, especially in regions where people are particularly reliant on natural resources for their livelihoods.

For example, around Lake Chad, climate change contributes to resource scarcities that increase local competition for land and water. This competition in turn often fuels social tensions and even violent conflict.

At the same time, this resource scarcity erodes the livelihoods of many people, aggravates poverty and unemployment, and leads to population displacement. Terrorist groups such as Boko Haram gain power in this fragile environment.

As climate change affects food security and the availability of water, and land, affected people will become more vulnerable not only to negative climate impacts but also to recruitment by terrorist groups offering alternative livelihoods and economic incentives.

Sometimes, terrorist groups try to fill the gap left by the state by providing basic services to build support among the local population. As climate impacts worsen, some states will increasingly struggle to provide services and maintain their legitimacy.

The report comes as famine, drought and war threaten millions in the region around Lake Chad, in Africa. On March 31, the UN Security Council passed a resolution on the Lake Chad region – home to Boko Haram – outlining their concern about the interplay of factors leading to the crisis there and calling for better collaboration amongst UN armed to deal with the situation.

The resolution, which also calls for the UNSG to issue a report on the crisis, came after UNSC ambassadors visited the region recently.

The report echoes the UN’s findings. It finds that dealing with climate change, boosting development and strengthening governments will reduce the threat of terrorism.

It also says climate action, development, counter terrorism strategies and peace building should be tackled together holistically – rather than in isolation which they are often are at present and which risks making each of the factors worse.

Other recommendations include improving the rule of law and strengthening local institutions to help reduce the risk that climate change presents to the rise and growth of terrorist groups, as well as being a core component of adaptation and peace building writ large.

People who are vulnerable to recruitment by terrorist groups are often reliant on agriculture for their livelihoods, so development efforts should focus on ensuring those livelihoods are sustainable in a changing climate.

Lastly, cities are often the pressure valve when climate, conflict and fragility occur – building resilient cities will therefore minimize the chances of tensions spilling over.

“A broader perspective will help to better address the root causes of the rise and growth of non-state armed groups,” Rüttinger said.

Trump’s Executive Order on Climate Change a great injustice to Mother Earth, Africa CSO

President Trump’s Executive Order on Climate Change will have far reaching impacts on many developing countries, especially in Africa, that are already bearing the brunt of the negative impacts of climate change.

African Civil Society, under the umbrella of the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA), says reversing the Obama climate plan is one of the greatest injustices and an onslaught on Mother Earth, especially in the fight against climate change.

The Energy Independence Executive Order, signed by US President, Donald Trump on March 29, 2017, has been hailed by groups in the fossil fuels business, but condemned by environmental campaigners as over a dozen measures enacted by President Obama to curb climate change have been suspended.

“Trump’s Climate Change Executive Order is rolling back the many years of global efforts that yielded the Convention and the Paris Agreement. The global community and other world leaders should resist the temptation of following the footstep of Trump to take the world several steps back in the fight against climate change,” said Mithika Mwenda, PACJA Secretary-General.

For a safer world, countries that are party to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement will urgently need to raise their ambition to increase the level of their greenhouse emission reduction targets communicated to the UNFCCC and keeping the global temperature to below 1.5^OC.

The current aggregate level of the communicated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) are estimated to lead to the average global temperature increase above 3⁰C by 2030, unless radical emissions reduction targets are urgently adopted by Parties.

The NDC of the United State of America submitted to the UNFCCC on March 31, 2015 commits USA to cutting its greenhouse gas emissions by 26%–28% below the 2005 level by 2025.

The US effort constitutes a part to the global comity of nations’ efforts to keep the planet safe.

“As one of the major contributors to the greenhouse gas emissions, the US continues to owe a huge ecological debt that can only be paid by the demonstration that it is committed to servicing this climate debt in an equitable, fair and just manner. Such efforts should align with the principle of Common But Differentiated Responsibility and Respective Capacity (CBDRC) of the Convention,” said a statement from PACJA.

African Civil Society is worried efforts to improve people’s vulnerability to climate change are being eroded by Trump’s Executive Order.

Currently, impacts of drought and famine in the Horn of Africa have led to deaths of humans and livestock in the region. Farmers in most parts of the Africa are feeling impacts of the changing climate in their agricultural production and productivity.

According to Sam Ogallah, Programme’s Manager at PACJA, Trump's action on climate change is likely to exacerbate the current migrant crisis.

"Climate change impacts are pushing many youth out of developing countries in search of better lives in developed countries. Some of these youth in an attempt to migrate to Europe have lost their lives. Addressing climate change in developing countries can go a long way to solving migrant crisis in Europe and other developed countries,” he said.

By Kofi Adu Domfeh

Climate Change threatens the Sustainable Development Agenda, says UN boss

UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, has emphasized the unprecedented and growing threat of climate change to the global sustainable development agenda.
 

Speaking at a high-level meeting, he observed the threat to peace and prosperity and said “addressing climate change is a massive opportunity that cannot afford to miss”.

Read and watch the statement of the UN Head…

First, climate change is an unprecedented and growing threat – to peace and prosperity and the same in relation to the Sustainable Development Goals.

Second, Atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide continue to rise. They are now topping the critical threshold of 400 parts per million.

Last year was once again the hottest on record.  The past decade has also been the hottest on record.  Sea ice is at a historic low; sea levels at a historic high.

This trend is indisputable.  There is no longer any doubt.  Human activity is causing dangerous global warming.

This is not a question of opinion.  Scientists around the world have been sounding the alarm for years.  Their work has been reviewed and endorsed by all the world’s governments through the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

We are dealing with scientific facts, not politics.  And the facts are clear.  Climate change is a direct threat in itself, and a multiplier of many other threats.

We face serious risks across the whole of the 2030 Agenda. Food security is under threat around the world due to more droughts.  With food insecurity, we must add economic insecurity as scarcities of staple crops cause price surges.

Water insecurity is also growing around the world.  One-third of the world’s population already lives in countries experiencing water stress.  As water gets more scarce, it threatens to become a catalyst for conflict.

Climate change is a menace to livelihoods, to property, and to business, not least insurance companies.  Wildfires are becoming more common.  So too are floods and other extreme weather events.  

Sea level rise threatens the existence of low-lying nations and cities from Miami to Mumbai.

The seas are also being affected by acidification and coral bleaching, threatening the whole marine food chain.

All these risks mean poverty will worsen and people will be forced to move from degraded lands to cities and other nations.  That is why military minds around the world take climate change very seriously indeed as a threat multiplier with direct consequences for peace and security.

So when we see a threat, what should we do?  It is very clear that we should act.

Action has been slow coming, but just over a year ago, in Paris, the world acted decisively.

The Paris Agreement on climate change is unique in its universality.  Every single government signed it.  

After it was adopted in December 2015, the Agreement entered force in less than a year.  To date more than 130 Parties have ratified it, and the numbers are growing monthly.  The United Nations is committed to helping all Member States to implement the Paris Agreement and the 2030 Agenda.

The countries that supported the Paris Agreement are the same that adopted the Sustainable Development Goals – they comprise all United Nations Member States.

And the reason for this consensus is clear: all nations recognize that implementing the 2030 Agenda goes hand-in-glove with limiting global temperature rise and increasing climate resilience.

Every month, ever more countries are transforming their pledges into national climate action plans.

Cities and businesses are also taking a lead.

And why?  They not only recognise the threat, they also see the clear benefits of working to limit global temperature rise.

And they are evidence that, even if some national governments backtrack on commitments, the combined efforts of sub-national authorities, business and civil society will create an unstoppable momentum.

They know that climate action is not only the right thing to do, it is good for business and the bottom line. 

Not only is action now far cheaper than the cost of inaction, it can unlock vast potential economic growth in all regions and for all people.

And this is my second point.  Tackling climate change is a tremendous opportunity.

That is why we see almost daily announcements being made by countries, ranging from renewable energy projects to climate-related laws, designed to keep temperature rise well below 2 degrees and as close to 1.5 degrees as possible. And that will only be achieved by massive action.

Earlier this month, Singapore announced plans to introduce a carbon tax in 2019 to cut emissions and spur clean technology and innovation.  

And, while the G20 finance ministers recently omitted to mention climate change, I understand that carbon pricing will be a key part of the G20 Summit in Germany in a few months’ time.

In March we learned that solar power grew 50 per cent in 2016, with China and the United States in the lead.  Globally, investment has grown by a factor of six in a decade to almost $300 billion dollars.  The acceleration has been particularly striking in emerging economies. 

Around the world, over half of new power generation capacity now comes from renewables.  In Europe, the figure is more than 90 per cent.  

In the United States and China, new renewable energy jobs now outstrip those created in the oil and gas industries.  Globally, over 8 million people work in the renewables sector.

This year, Saudi Arabia announced plans to install 700 megawatts of solar and wind power.  The Asian Development Bank has signed a new $109 million-dollar financing package for geothermal power generation in western Indonesia supported by Japan.  And industry experts predict India’s solar capacity will double in 2017 to 18 gigawatts.

So the trend is clear, the world is moving towards a green economy.  Governments and business increasingly understand that there is no trade-off between a healthy environment and a healthy economy.

We can have both. Green business is good business. Renewables are one example.  Energy efficiency is another.

The International Energy Agency has identified that investing in energy efficiency could boost cumulative economic global output by $18 trillion dollars.  This is more than the total outputs of the United States, Canada and Mexico combined.

As we work towards Sustainable Development Goal 7 to provide clean, affordable and efficient energy for all, it is clear that the world will need to invest massively.  Estimates predict future spending on energy infrastructure alone will total some $37 trillion dollars.

So, given the facts about youth unemployment, air pollution and climate change, surely it is common sense to put that money where it will create the most jobs, deliver the biggest health care savings and have the most impact on global warming.


In other words, it makes sense to invest in combatting climate change for a sustainable future.
Excellencies,

If we want to protect forests and life on land, safeguard our oceans, create massive economic opportunities, prevent even more massive losses and improve the health and well-being of people and the planet, we have one simple option staring us in the face.

Climate action is a necessity.  It is also a clear opportunity to advance all our efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

How we go about it can be the subject of scientific and political debate.  But there is no question that we must act, urgently and decisively, now.

That was the verdict of all the world’s governments in Paris in December 2015.
And it remains the only viable way to safeguard peace, prosperity and a sustainable future.
Thank you.

Watch the video on webtv.un.org

Petition: Stop European Hijacking of the Africa Renewable Energy Initiative!!

African Civil Society under the ambit of the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA) is petitioning the European Union (EU) and France to ensure the Africa Renewable Energy Initiative (AREI) succeeds.
 

The organization wants all partners to champion the cause of a truly African-led and people-centred approach to renewable energy on the continent.

Below is the content of the petition:

We, the undersigned representatives of African civil society, express our deep concern regarding efforts by the European Union and France to hijack the Africa Renewable Energy Initiative (AREI), an African-owned and African-led initiative endorsed by all 55 African Heads of State to scale up renewable energy on our continent.

AREI was launched by the African governments with the support of African citizens during COP21 in Paris, with the goal to provide at least 10 billion watts (10GW) of new and additional renewable energy to Africa’s peoples by 2020, and put the continent on course to add at least another 300 GW and achieve universal access to energy for all Africans by 2030.  It was supported by $10 billion in pledges for 2015-2020 by developed countries in Paris.

AREI as defined in its framework, principles and work plans is a unique initiative. It is aligned with our values of people-centred approaches, community rights, equity and a bold vision of Africa taking a global lead towards flourishing societies powered by clean, renewable energy.

Since Paris, an Independent Delivery Unit was set up to deliver in accordance with AREI’s people-centred principles and approaches. The expectation was that a Board with Heads of State representing each African sub-region would be established, supported by a technical committee involving broad representation and participation by civil society

AREI’s integrity and promise of bringing light and energy to Africa’s people is now being gravely threatened by the efforts of the European Union and France for premature, undue approval of ‘their’ projects and seeming attempts to co-opt the initiative to serve their ends, supported by a small handful of Africans.  At a Board Meeting convened in Conakry on 4 March, we understand the European Union and France have:

·       Publicly “announced the preparation of 19 new renewable energy projects, with a total potential investment of €4.8 billion” (EU press release 4 March) – when they are actually claiming to provide a mere 1/16th or €0.3 billion of this amount, not all of which is for “new projects” or even for “renewable energy”, and with no clarity whether any of these are “additional’” efforts.    

       

·       Managed to have rammed through the Board for adoption these partly EU-funded projects, despite the express objections from some African countries and institutions, and contrary to the principles of African ownership that would expect project priorities and proposals to stem directly from African countries

·       Ignored and bypassed AREI’s own evaluation process in accordance to its criteria – developed with African and northern government, civil society and other stakeholder inputs. These require all projects be assessed in line with AREI social, environmental, gender and other principles and safeguards before any approvals can be made

·       Claiming Board memberships when they seem to have only been invited to the meetings (AREI minutes of the first inaugural board on 29 January) and contrary to the idea there should be one developing and one developed non-African country in the Board.

·       Pushed for the imposition of EU technical experts to supposedly take control of AREI core documents to be consistent with European interests

All the above seems to have caused the Head of the Independent Delivery Unit, a prominent and well-respected African, to declare his resignation.

These actions have been enabled by one or two African states while the interests of the majority of States, and of Africans, have been set aside.

PACJA has called for all partners in government, academia, faith-based, labour, gender, environmental, community-based organizations, national coalitions and regional and international networks to join us in championing a truly African-led and people-centred approach to renewable energy on our continent. AREI needs to succeed.

Click the link below and support the petition.

https://www.change.org/p/we-the-undersigned-representatives-of-african-civil-society-express-our-deep-concern-regarding-eff-stop-european-hijacking-of-the-africa-renewable-energy-initiative