Although Africa has contributed relatively little to the planet's greenhouse gas emissions, the continent has suffered some of the world's heaviest impacts of climate change, from famine to flooding.
Yet from its coral reefs to its highest peaks, the reverberations of human-caused global warming will only get worse, according to a new United Nations report
The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change predicted Monday that Saharan flooding, heat and drought will increase, Africa's rich array of wildlife and plants will decline and glaciers on its most iconic mountains will disappear in coming decades.
On a continent already grappling with high poverty levels and food insecurity, the panel warned that fishermen and farmers will feel the pain of future climate change on their lives and livelihoods.
In Kenya, farmer Safari Mbuvi already is trying to weather his country's a four-year drought — and watching his crops fail, again and again.
"Since I was young, my father used to get a bounty harvest in this farm, but now, there seems to be a change in climate and the rains are no longer dependable," he said. "I will not harvest anything, not even a single sack of maize is possible. ... And I am not the only one. Every farmer in this area has lost everything."
Warming temperatures will weaken Africa's food production system by leading to water scarcity and shorter growing seasons, the UN report said. Yields of olives, sorghum, coffee, tea and livestock production are expected to decline.
"Agricultural productivity growth has been reduced by 34% since 1961 due to climate change more than any other region." the panel said.
Climate change, along with conflicts, instability and economic crises, has contributed to hunger. Since 2012, the undernourished population in sub-Saharan Africa has increased by 45.6%, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization. And in 2020, approximately 98 million people suffered from acute food insecurity and needed humanitarian assistance in Africa, said the Global Report on Food Crises by the World Food Programme.
If the world warms just another degree Celsius (1.8 degrees Fahrenheit) by 2050, an additional 1.4 million African children will suffer severe stunting from malnutrition that limits growth and cognitive development, the IPCC said.
"The lack of food and under-nutrition are strongly linked with hot climates in the sub-Saharan area and less rainfall in West and Central Africa," the panel said in a FAQ document. "Climate change can undermine children's education attainment, thus reducing their chances for well-paid jobs or higher incomes later in life."
Jean Paul Adam, who heads the climate change division at the UN Economic Commission for Africa, said, "Africa constitutes 17% of global population but only accounts for less than 4% of global greenhouse gas emissions. This is the region of the world already being severely impacted of climate change plus having an extremely low adaptive capacity."
Climate change has a major social injustice component, with the poor hit harder by pollution from the rich, said former Ireland President Mary Robinson, now with The Elders, a Nelson Mandela-founded group of senior statesmen. "All of the injustices are captured by looking at the region of Africa."
Drought is a problem that hits the continent particularly hard. While only 7% of the world's disasters were drought related, they caused slightly more than one-third of the disaster deaths, "mostly in Africa," the IPCC report said.
Droughts have also reduced Africa's hydropower by about 5% compared to the long-term average, hindering growth, the report said.
"When we look at impacts, it isn't just that Africa is getting hit with the droughts and cyclones and the sea level rise and the disruption of rainfall patterns," said Canadian climate scientist Katharine Hayhoe, chief scientist for The Nature Conservancy. "It's that their vulnerability is so much higher than a lot of other places."
Scientists say it is impossible to untangle Africa's poverty and harm from climate change.
"Africa gets the short shrift because it's in some ways more vulnerable to physical impacts, but also because there's going to be a lot of people living on less than a dollar a day," said climate scientist Zeke Hausfather of the Breakthrough Institute.
Monday's report said sea-surface temperatures are projected to rise, threatening fragile marine ecosystems, including East African coral reefs. The report warns of threats posed to livelihoods of 12.3 million people who depend on fisheries.
The report said global warming also will hit Africa's famous wildlife and highest mountains.
It predicted glacier ice covers on the Ruwenzori Mountains and Mount Kenya would be gone by 2030 and that Mount Kilimanjaro would lose its around 2040.
By 2100, the report said, climate change is expected to lead to loss of more than half of African bird and mammal species — and a 20% to 25% decline in the productivity of Africa's lakes and plant species. Increased damage to coral reefs from pollution and climate change is expected to harm fisheries and overall marine biodiversity.
In the coming decades, Africa's mainland, islands and coastal cities will be exposed to climate change risks that can seriously undermine economic sectors such agriculture, tourism, transportation and energy.
The report predicts reduced frequency of Category 5 cyclones, although it says they are projected to be more intense with high impacts upon landfall.
By 2030, the report projects that 108 to 116 million people in Africa will be exposed to sea-level rise — and that without adaptation measures, 12 major coastal cities will suffer a total of $65 billion to $86.5 billion in damages.
Rapid African urbanization, inadequate infrastructure as well growth of informal settlements will expose more people to climate hazards, the report said.
It noted that sub-Saharan Africa is the only region that has recorded increasing rates of flood mortality since the 1990 — and that millions of people were displaced by weather-related causes in 2018 and 2019.
"A lot of cities are completely unprepared for the scale of the challenges ahead, or even actively making the situation worse," said Kaisa Kosonen a senior policy advisor at Greenpeace Nordic. "Real action on climate change requires resilient urban development and justice."
___
Associated Press climate and environmental coverage receives support from several private foundations. See more about AP's climate initiative here. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
Iranian agents allegedly plotted to assassinate Canadian human rights advocate and former Liberal justice minister Irwin Cotler, a longtime vocal critic of Iran. Details of the foiled plot were first reported by The Globe and Mail citing unnamed sources on Monday and confirmed to CTV News by Cotler's office.
The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) says it will adjust the opening hours of crossing points across the country early next year.
Canadians are bracing for a chilly start to the week as snowfall and other wintry conditions are expected to make landfall across western and eastern provinces.
Police in Halifax say the death of a Walmart employee who was found inside an oven in the store last month is not suspicious, but they are refusing to release any additional details.
An Environment Canada meteorologist says a so-called "bomb cyclone" is expected to bring powerful winds to Vancouver Island and the British Columbia coast this week.
Canada Post and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) are meeting with a special mediator for the first time Monday to continue talks as they enter the fourth day of a national strike.
Lawyers for Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs accused prosecutors on Monday of engaging in “outrageous government conduct” by using materials seized from his jail cell to try to keep him incarcerated before a May trial.
Dozens of people in Halton Region are out tens of thousands of dollars after buying fake or nonexistent tickets to Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour dates in Toronto, police say.
A mummified ice age cub from Siberia is the first known mummy of a sabre-toothed cat, and its discovery is generating ripples of excitement among paleontologists.
Police in Halifax say the death of a Walmart employee who was found inside an oven in the store last month is not suspicious, but they are refusing to release any additional details.
An Environment Canada meteorologist says a so-called "bomb cyclone" is expected to bring powerful winds to Vancouver Island and the British Columbia coast this week.
The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) says it will adjust the opening hours of crossing points across the country early next year.
SaskPower is appealing a decision ordering the provincial Crown to pay $840,000 after two of its line workers died while on the job.
Jury selection is underway in the trial of two men accused of smuggling migrants across the Canada-U. S. border.
Ontario has tabled a bill that aims to shutter 10 supervised consumption sites the government deems are too close to schools and daycares.
A proposed law that would redefine New Zealand’s founding treaty between the British Crown and Māori chiefs has triggered political turmoil.
An Israeli airstrike late Monday slammed into a densely populated residential area in Lebanon's capital close to the UN headquarters, Parliament, the prime minister's office and several embassies.
A man carried out a string of stabbings across a swath of Manhattan on Monday morning, killing two people and critically wounding a third without uttering a word to his victims, officials said.
South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Monday lives should not be put at risk in a standoff between police and hundreds of illegal miners stuck underground in a disused mine shaft and the miners should be recovered safely.
Survivors of clergy sexual abuse urged the Vatican on Monday to expand its zero-tolerance policy that it approved for the U.S. Catholic Church in 2002 to the rest of the world, arguing that children everywhere should be protected from predator priests.
Retired Sydney radio broadcaster and former Australian national rugby coach Alan Jones was charged Monday with multiple sex crimes against males over two decades, police said.
Iranian agents allegedly plotted to assassinate Canadian human rights advocate and former Liberal justice minister Irwin Cotler, a longtime vocal critic of Iran. Details of the foiled plot were first reported by The Globe and Mail citing unnamed sources on Monday and confirmed to CTV News by Cotler's office.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and U.S. President Joe Biden discussed the importance of democracy the rule of law during a meeting the G20 summit in Brazil.
Support for Ukraine will be tested at the G20 summit as nations clash over whether they should continue offering military support for Kyiv or impose a truce on a conflict which began with Russia's invasion nearly three years ago.
A group of physicians are setting up unofficial overdose prevention sites outside two Vancouver Island hospitals Monday, aiming to help people struggling with addiction – while also sending a message to the government.
Quebec wants to improve access to abortion services as part of a new plan to counter what the government describes as an erosion of women's rights around the world.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is investigating an E. coli outbreak in at least 18 states linked to some organic carrots, which has led to at least one death.
Six monkeys were still on the loose early Monday after dozens escaped earlier this month from a South Carolina compound that breeds the primates for medical research, according to authorities.
Strategies for mitigating the negative mental health effects of social media tend to focus on reducing time spent scrolling, according to a B.C. researcher, who says there may be a way to limit the harm without logging off.
Famously known for its extensive ring system, Saturn is one of four planets in our solar system that have the distinctive feature. And now, scientists hypothesize that Earth may have sported its own ring some 466 million years ago.
Lawyers for Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs accused prosecutors on Monday of engaging in “outrageous government conduct” by using materials seized from his jail cell to try to keep him incarcerated before a May trial.
Quincy Jones died two weeks before he could accept his second honourary Oscar, alongside Bond producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson, filmmaker Richard Curtis and casting director Juliet Taylor.
Jonathan Majors and Meagan Good have announced their engagement at the same annual event where they met two years ago.
The Associated Press said on Monday it would lay off about 8 per cent of its workforce as it looks to modernize its operations and products.
A company affiliated with conspiracy theorist Alex Jones asked a federal judge on Monday to disqualify a bid by the satirical news outlet The Onion to buy Jones' Infowars at a bankruptcy auction, alleging fraud and collusion.
Some supermarkets in Russia have taken to keeping butter in locked cabinets amid rising prices.
Hundreds of organic baby- and toddler-sized rompers sold by an Ontario-based sustainable clothing company have been recalled over concerns they could catch fire and injure children, according to Health Canada.
A piece of national park history surfaced at Point Pelee National Park this week – a pair of parks badges from 1939 and 1940.
Chelsea striker Sam Kerr and U.S. midfielder Kristie Mewis are expecting a baby.
The Grey Cup celebrations may not be over yet. A lucky fan may be sitting on a 50/50 ticket worth $434,405.
The PWHL is taking women’s pro hockey to places from Raleigh, North Carolina, to the Pacific Northwest in releasing its nine-date schedule of neutral site games on Monday.
Formula 1 will move the Canadian Grand Prix to a new slot in May from 2026 in an effort to cut down on travel and its environmental impact.
In part two of a three-part series into how thieves are able to drive off with modern vehicles so easily, CTV W5 correspondent Jon Woodward uses a device flagged by police to easily clone a car key.
When a Tesla crashed on Lakeshore Boulevard in Toronto last month, the first people on scene knew there were occupants inside but couldn't immediately get them out.
Almost four out of five Canadian drivers switch to winter tires when the weather calls for them, according to a new survey.
Stretching 3,000 kilometres from the tip of New Zealand to its southernmost point, with just a bicycle for transport and a tent to call home, bikepacking event Tour Aotearoa is not for the faint of heart.
When he first moved to his urban neighbourhood, Barry Devonald was surprised to be welcomed by a whole flock of new neighbours.
When George Arcioni began renovating his kitchen last summer, he didn’t expect to find a stack of letters hidden in the wall behind his oven.
A Nova Scotia couple fulfilled their wildest dreams Thursday night when they got engaged at Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour in Toronto.
Some Calgary residents caught what appeared to be a meteor streaking across the sky early on Wednesday morning.
Four years ago, Phill Hebb started up 'Phil’s Unique Birdhouses' and since then, they’ve made their way all across Canada and into the United States.
A New Brunswick fashion designer recently won the top prize at a national event for a dress she made using an unconventional material.
Dr. Ronald Weiss, who performed nearly 60,000 vasectomies on Ottawa men, establishing him as the "Wayne Gretzky" of the procedure, has died.
A congestion crisis, a traffic nightmare, or unrelenting gridlock -- whatever you call it, most agree that Toronto has a congestion problem. To alleviate some of the gridlock, the Ontario government has announced it plans to remove bike lanes from three major roadways.
A man has died after being attacked during a large-scale fight in Surrey.
An Environment Canada meteorologist says a so-called "bomb cyclone" is expected to bring powerful winds to Vancouver Island and the British Columbia coast this week.
The owners of an e-bike shop in Richmond, B.C., are reeling after someone crashed a stolen truck into their showroom during an attempted smash-and-grab over the weekend.
Ontario has tabled a bill that aims to shutter 10 supervised consumption sites the government deems are too close to schools and daycares.
A suspect is facing charges in connection with the theft of nearly $63,000 worth of items from various LCBO stores, Peel Regional Police say.
Nine people were injured, including two critically, after a stolen vehicle collided with a TTC bus in North York early Monday morning, Toronto police say.
Calgary drivers had a slow and slippery commute to work on Monday, thanks to a dump of snow.
A High River couple is celebrating a big lottery win that will help them retire.
Police are responding to a crash involving more than a dozen vehicles on Highway 1 east of Gleichen, Alta. Gleichen RCMP said the multi-vehicle crash occurred in the westbound lanes of the Trans-Canada Highway between Highway 842 and Highway 56.
The Canadian dollar is at its lowest level since May 2020, with $1 CAD converting to $0.71 U.S. That means purchasing produce from the states is more expensive for Alfonso Curcio, the owner of Farmer’s Pick in Ottawa.
A few weeks ago, they learned the tickets they booked last August were never real.
An inquest begins today into the 2016 death of Abdiraham Abdi, who died after an altercation with Ottawa police officers in 2016. The inquest is scheduled for 21 days, and will hear from approximately 25 witnesses.
Members of a homeless encampment on Notre-Dame Street in Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve have been given eviction notices by the Quebec government.
Lion Electric Co. is opening the door to a possible sale of the company as the electric bus maker struggles to staunch an ongoing cash bleed.
Iranian agents allegedly plotted to assassinate Canadian human rights advocate and former Liberal justice minister Irwin Cotler, a longtime vocal critic of Iran. Details of the foiled plot were first reported by The Globe and Mail citing unnamed sources on Monday and confirmed to CTV News by Cotler's office.
Alberta's health minister says the province's new hospital agency will be operational next spring, months later than expected.
Wetaskiwin RCMP are searching for a 25-year-old in connection to a house fire on Nov. 7.
A new sports recreation facility held a soft opening on Sunday.
Police in Halifax say the death of a Walmart employee who was found inside an oven in the store last month is not suspicious, but they are refusing to release any additional details.
Police and agriculture officials seized more than 80 goats and two sheep from a property in Sherbrooke, P.E.I., on Friday.
Extended periods of dry weather in the summer and throughout the fall have contributed to a developing drought situation in the Maritimes.
A winter storm is heading to western Manitoba this week.
Nick Demski sat slumped in his locker, staring off into space.
New lighting, roofing and score clocks are among the repairs and upgrades made at city-owned arenas as part of the first phase of a multimillion-dollar renewal program.
The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) is changing the hours of six border crossings in Saskatchewan in the new year.
Regina's newest mayor and iteration of city council will be sworn in Monday night at a ceremony at Henry Baker Hall.
Front-line RCMP officers in Saskatchewan are being issued body-worn cameras this month, as part of a nationwide effort to increase “transparency and accountability.”
A Guelph man has been charged after phone and internet cables for at least 18 Guelph businesses were cut last week.
Ray of Home says it will no longer be offering its youth Live-In Treatment program.
A group of municipal and regional councillors in Ontario have come together to speak out against the potential use of the Notwithstanding Clause to deal with encampments.
Front-line RCMP officers in Saskatchewan are being issued body-worn cameras this month, as part of a nationwide effort to increase “transparency and accountability.”
A winter storm watch has been upgraded to a warning for parts of northeastern Saskatchewan, Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) says. With as much as 30 centimetres of snow possible in some areas.
A 33-year-old woman was stabbed in downtown Saskatoon on Sunday, and police want to clarify it was not connected to the Santa Claus Parade.
A Kapuskasing school and childcare centre lockdown ended Monday afternoon. It was prompted by a police investigation.
Greater Sudbury's planning committee will vote Nov. 25 on a rezoning and official plan amendment for the former hospital in Sudbury, a key step in a major redevelopment of the Paris Street site.
WestJet is returning to Sudbury with a plan to offer direct flights to Calgary beginning in June.
Located at the London Health Sciences Centre Victoria Hospital, LHSC says the hub that is set to open Nov. 25, will offer vital support, resources and care to young Londoners living without housing.
The City of London says its leaf and yard waste materials collection program is experiencing a delay due to an increase in the number of bags placed out.
Around 7:20 p.m. on Sunday, police said a woman was working in a locked business in the area of Richmond Street and Horton Street when somebody knocked at the door.
This year, Collingwood’s Christmas tree debuted Saturday with what some described as an underwhelming display, prompting both criticism and sympathy for the organizers.
Provincial police are investigating a collision in Bracebridge that claimed the life of one person over the weekend.
One local baker turned her inspiration for her favourite music artist into something quite sweet and delicious.
Windsor police have temporarily closed a section of Walker Road after a crash.
Classes at the University of Windsor have been cancelled Monday evening due to a power outage.
The federal government has invested $3.6 million, helping Windsor rapidly build 12 new affordable homes.
A group of physicians are setting up unofficial overdose prevention sites outside two Vancouver Island hospitals Monday, aiming to help people struggling with addiction – while also sending a message to the government.
Premier David Eby will introduce his new cabinet in British Columbia today after last month's tight election win that gave his New Democrats a slim, one-seat majority.
Stretching 3,000 kilometres from the tip of New Zealand to its southernmost point, with just a bicycle for transport and a tent to call home, bikepacking event Tour Aotearoa is not for the faint of heart.
Police are appealing for information on a targeted shooting that resulted in the hospitalization of a man in Kamloops.
British Columbia's independent police watchdog has cleared officers of wrongdoing in a crash where three people were killed south of Kamloops in July of last year.
A B.C. woman who stole more than $14,000 in volunteer-raised funds that were supposed to be spent on school supplies and programs – including hot meals for vulnerable kids – won't spend any time in jail.
The potential resurrection of Crowsnest Pass coal mining should never pit the environment against the economy, said a community member and retired professor in the lead-up to a Nov. 25 vote of electors.
Protesters against the proposed Grassy Mountain coal mining project demonstrated in downtown Calgary Friday.
Early Friday morning, the union representing Canada Post workers officially went on strike. The strike will have a wide-reaching impact on many Canadians, and it comes at a difficult time for charities.
A Sault Ste. Marie program that gives people on social housing the opportunity to purchase a newly renovated home has just changed the lives of another local family.
About 700 Canada Post workers are walking the picket lines in communities across northeastern Ontario.
After receiving reports of a dangerous and erratic driver, police in Sault Ste. Marie charged the driver of a vehicle on Highway 17 this week.
The four women sipping tea around an antique wooden table in rural Newfoundland said they weren't looking for much in a mate: kindness, humour, a good sense of fun and, ideally, a full set of teeth.
Newfoundland and Labrador's return on investment for sponsoring a professional English soccer team was not quite as rosy as previously claimed.
Police in Newfoundland say a man was electrocuted Saturday by a downed power wire about 10 kilometres north of St. John's, N.L.
The Shopping Trends team is independent of the journalists at CTV News. We may earn a commission when you use our links to shop. Read about us.
