At the just concluded seventh conference of parties of the African Risk Capacity member states are advised to be part of this innovative pan-African disaster risk financing mechanism to protect the livelihood of most vulnerable population

By Maureen Chigbo, reporting from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

THE humanitarian cost of natural and man-made disasters was the thrust of the opening of the ministerial session of the Seventh Conference of Parties, COP7, of the African Risk Capacity.

The COP7, which held at the African Union headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from March 31 to April 1, also dwelt on getting member states to ratify the ARC treaty as well as pay premium to enable it effectively mitigate the effects of natural or man-made disasters in affected countries

Speakers ranging from Lamin Dibba, Gambian minister of environment, climate change and natural resources,  who is also the chairman of the conference, Mohamed Beavogui, director general of African Risk Capacity, Josefa Leonel Correia Sacko Commissioner for rural economy and agriculture, African Union Commission  to Angelline Rudakubana, director, WFP Africa Office and representative to the AU and UNECA,  stressed the effects of climate related disasters such as the most recent cyclone Adai in Mozambique on the humans  beings and the environment.

Sacko, who represented Moussa Mahamat Faki, chairperson of Africa Union Commission, AUC, pointed out that Africa is currently living with frequent recurrence of disasters with significant losses of lives, infrastructures and economies.

In 2017, globally, disasters caused by natural hazards resulted in an estimated 278 billion United States Dollars economic losses. Drought and floods were responsible for the 94 percent of the people affected, while earthquakes and tsunamis accounted for 56 percent of deaths.

Most recently, early March, tropical cyclone IDAI affected countries in Southern Africa, bringing torrential rains and flooding, causing over 1000 deaths and hundreds of thousands of people being displaced.

Studies have also shown that Africa suffers disproportionately from the adverse effects of natural hazards. In the past 20 years, the number of disasters—mainly cyclones, floods, landslides and droughts—has doubled, resulting in higher mortality rates than any other region globally. Sub-Saharan Africa has experienced more than 2,000 disasters since 1970.

In view of threats posed by disaster risks, the African Union established the African Risk Capacity, ARC, a treaty-based specialized agency of the African Union that aims at helping Member States of the African Union to improve their capacities to better plan, prepare and respond to extreme events and natural disasters. The ARC Treaty was adopted by duly authorized Plenipotentiaries on 23 November 2012, and is currently in force provisionally, until the 10th instrument of ratification is deposited with the AU Commission, in accordance with Article 26.

To date, the ARC Treaty has been signed by 33 AU Member States and ratified by 8 AU Member States (Mauritania, Mali, Senegal, The Gambia, Chad, Togo, Guinea, and Madagascar).

Sacko says this mechanism put in place by ARC is one of the ways in which Africa can be self-reliant and self-sufficient in meeting the needs of vulnerable populations.

She encouraged member States to sign on a solution that helps to address timely responses to natural disasters and ratify the ARC Treaty, and become members of this innovative pan-African disaster risk financing mechanism protecting the livelihoods of our most vulnerable populations.

Similarly, Rudakubana said as Africa continues to experience multiple humanitarian crises, both man-made and natural disasters, some at unprecedented scales, the capacities of the humanitarian community to fully meet those needs, continue to be significantly stretched.

The ongoing cyclone Adai is yet another bitter reality facing Africa with extensive loss of lives and of livelihoods and to date, one of the worst weather-related disasters ever to hit the southern hemisphere, she said.

According to her, “The humanitarian costs of climate related disasters are increasing. We are all confronted with a growing number of people who require assistance in the light of extreme weather events. In the last decade, WFP invested USD 23 billion in emergency and recovery operations following climate related disaster.

“This meeting is indeed timely as it gives us another wake up call to action as we face natural disasters, losses of lives and livelihoods.

“As we all know, our continent is one of the most vulnerable region to natural disasters and the impact of climate change. From increased frequency of drought in the Sahel, to floods in the small island states, livelihood of hundreds of millions are at risk. Poor household and vulnerable populations continue to bear the brunt of this, as a vicious cycle links climate change impact to rural poverty and fragility.”

Between 2014 and 2017, for example, disasters caused by natural hazards affected more than 870 million people per year – causing loss of life, devastating livelihoods, and forcing about 20 million people from their homes each year. In most countries, inside and outside Africa, there is a parent out there who does not know where the next meal to feed her child will come from, a family walking for miles as their homes and livelihoods have been destroyed and those mourning the loss of their loved ones.

Recent data shows that one in every 70 people around the world is caught up in this crisis and urgently needs humanitarian assistance.

“We all recognize the challenges that African countries face and that is why we are all gathered here. These include fiscal constraints, lack of appropriate policy and institutional framework, to prepare for, manage and respond to disaster risks, she said, pointing out that ARC since its formation in 2012 has provided capacity building, institutional support for early warning, contingency planning and management and risk financing to African countries.

“ARC continues to be a valuable and a tangible example of how African governments working in partnership can help address the issue of improving management and financing of disaster risks on the continent,” Rudakubana said.

– Apr. 3, 2019 @ 17:19 GMT |