Africa Water, Sanitation & Hygiene December 2018 Vol.13 No.6 | Page 17

Climate Change
late 20th century, it will also be the pivot point for climate-
smart agriculture and dealing with water scarcity. We need
a second revolution that improves the performance of
the very same irrigation systems that were constructed
during the Green Revolution. This requires not only
the modernization of infrastructure, but also reformed
institutions and new operational concepts to provide
more flexible and efficient irrigation services. Our great
challenge is finding a way to untie the Gordian knot of
institutional reform in the irrigation sector.
Finally, we need to safeguard the water and sanitation
systems that are the foundation of public health
improvements and urban development—the motors
of prosperity. This means building a portfolio of water
supply sources, including surface and groundwater, reuse,
desalination; protecting source water quality; and managing
demand through pricing and conservation. None of this
will happen in many countries until the Achilles Heel of
the WSS is addressed—improving the performance of
water utilities.
With risk comes opportunity. We have a chance to refocus
on long-standing problems with the new urgency of
climate adaptation. As the Bank’s new Adaptation and
Resilience Strategy implores: Do More, Do Better, and Do
New. Let’s Go!
About the Author
Greg Browder oversees the World Bank’s
knowledge program on Water Security and
Water Resources Management and helps to
ensure that global best practice is incorporated
into World Bank projects and studies. In his
20 years at the World Bank, Greg has been
involved in numerous large-scale water projects in East Asia,
South Asia, and Latin America and has published studies related
to water resources management and urban water supply and
sanitation. He has Ph.D. in Environmental Engineering from
Stanford University.
COP24: Africa Day calls for increased partnership to accelerate
Africa’s low-carbon, climate-resilient development pathway
The opening day of COP24 Leader’s Summit was marked
by the celebration of Africa Day which focused on how
the implementation of Africa’s Nationally Determined
Contributions for a healthy environment can accelerate
development on the continent.
Africa Day, a joint initiative of the African Development
Bank, African Union Commission UN Economic
Commission for Africa and the New Partnership for
Africa’s Development (NEPAD), was organized, this year,
around the theme, “The Africa Nationally Determined
Contributions (NDC) Hub: Going further and faster with
NDC implementation in support of Agenda 2063.”
Four Pan-African institutions along with the Kingdom of
Lesotho and the Republic of Gabon. The Pan-African
Parliament (PAP) and the African Risk Capacity (ARC) co-
organized the day.
African Union commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat.
A high level Ministerial panel and a Parliamentary dialogue
provided a platform for detailed discussions on this year’s
theme and Africa’s position at COP24. The last segment
of the Africa Day was an expert panel discussion from
various technical institutions on the theme of the day.
Foreign Minister Immongault noted that the outcomes
of COP 24 should facilitate development in Africa. He
emphasised the need to develop strong partnerships to
implement the NDCs in Africa. “I also extend appreciation
to the Africa NDC Hub for reaching out to Partners
to support Africa. In this regard, I wish to urge more
Partners to come on board to support African countries in
the implementation of the NDCs for the achievement of
Africa’s commitment to the Paris Agreement,” he added.
Africa Day 2018 focused on how to ensure that all
development partners deepen their partnerships and
commitments to deliver concrete actions and resources for
African countries to deliver their NDC targets and enable
the imlpementation of the Paris Agreement. Africa Union Commissioner Sacko stated that African
countries remain committed to tackling climate change
and its impacts.“Countries in Africa continue to suffer
from the adverse impacts of climate change with the
costs of climate change threatening the realization of the
aspirations of Agenda 2063 the Africa we want.
Highlights of the event included a high-level statement by
Gabon’s Minister of Foreign affairs, Regis Immongault,
on behalf of President Ali Bongo Ondimba, Coordinator
of the Committee of African Heads of State and
Government on Climate Change (CAHOSCC). Josefa
Sacko, African Union Commissioner for Rural Economy
and Agriculture represented the chair Person of the Climate change is also partially to blame for increased
migration of African youths to Europe through the
deadly Mediterranean Sea due to shrinking livelihood
opportunities”. She further highlighted the link between
climate change and conflicts in Africa as demonstrated by
the Boko Haram’ insurgency in Western and Central Africa
partly as a result of the shrinking of Lake Chad.
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