{{African leaders have agreed to have one voice on Climate Change effects during the coming meeting with the UN Secretary General, Mr Ban Ki-moon, to be held in New York late next month.}}
This was said at a news conference held yesterday after a day-long session of the ministers for Environment and Foreign Affairs from African countries in Dar es Salaam to lay out strategies and mechanisms to fight climate change impacts.
The meeting was attended by leaders from 12 African countries, representing the Committee of African Heads of State and Government on Climate Change (CAHOSCC) and was opened by Prime Minister Mizengo Pinda.
It was highlighted that adaptation programmes should be addressed while closely monitoring on how developed countries will help Africa in financial capacity, technology and human resources.
The minister of State in the Vice President’s Office (Environment), Dr Binilith Mahenge, said that the meeting is a continuation of various efforts being made by African leaders in dealing and offering directives on how to tackle and fight climate change effects.
“The plan is to make them (developed countries) help us in mitigation, by helping us financially and technologically, because they are the ones who are emitting more gases than us,” said Dr Mahenge.
He noted that developed countries have been footing only 17 per cent of what is required for mitigation process, which, according to him, is still too low.
According to Dr Mahenge, the council of ministers meeting is also expected to set up standardised models of equitable utilisation of the continent’s natural resources.
For his part, the Permanent Secretary in the Vice President’s Office, Mr Sazi Salula noted that currently Africa suffers more from the effects while it produces less emissions than Western countries.
“They need to give financial and technological support in handling the effects, because we are suffering from the gases which they produce,” he said while adding that African forests absorb a total of 60 billion cubic feet of emitted gases annually.
“Africa produces a total of 600 million tons of gases annually, compared to a single country (Germany) which produces a total of 800 tons annually,” detailed Mr Salula.
For her part, the deputy director in the Environment department dealing with Environment Pollution Control, Ms Magdalena Mtenga, hinted that the government is at final preparations of unveiling the set standards and regulations for noise pollution.
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