President Mutharika launches 2007/2008 Human Development Report and unveils the national climate change adaptation plan

H.E. Dr Bingu wa Mutharika and UN Resident Coordinator/UNDP Resident Representative Michael Keating after the President officially launched the Fighting climate change and the National Adaptations Programme of Action (NAPA) to address the impact of climate change.

Lilongwe, 11 February 2008 – Malawi’s President has reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to strengthen its response to climate change and integrate environmental and climate risk-related issues into development policies and programmes.

His Excellency the President of the Republic of Malawi, Dr. Bingu wa Mutharika was speaking at the national launch of 2007/2008 Human Development Report titled Fighting climate change: human solidarity in a divided world. The HDR is United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) flagship publication, commissioned annually to present the most pressing challenges facing humanity. Fighting climate change puts a human face to climate change and makes an urgent appeal for renewed international cooperation to put poor and vulnerable people at the core of mitigation and adaptation efforts.

Dr. Mutharika drew attention to climatic hazards which have increased in frequency, intensity and magnitude over the last two decades and which have adversely affected food and water security, energy and livelihoods. Agriculture, the backbone of Malawi’s economy for a largely rural population that relies on rain fed agriculture, is already being impacted by climate shocks.

In the last two years, Malawi has achieved record harvests that are attributed to good rainfall and an agricultural input subsidies programme. But Malawi like the rest of Africa, remains vulnerable to climate shocks and urgent action is required to avert future catastrophes.

Climate change shocks, experienced between 1999 and 2005 affected livelihoods by wiping out crops, reducing employment opportunities and economic growth, pushing up food prices and forcing people to make stark choices to survive. Malawi witnessed its worst drought during this period putting 5 million people or almost a third of the population in desperate need of food aid and despite two years of good harvests, many have not fully recovered.

At the event, Mr. Michael Keating, UN Resident Coordinator/UNDP Resident Representative said, “Climate change shocks are not a future possibility but a current reality. Adaptation is a necessity and must be at the heart of growth strategies so that the country’s development goals are met. Climate change is not just an environmental issue; it is an economic, social and political challenge.”

“Development partners want to support Malawi to cope. Climate change is no longer scientifically disputed. It is happening, now. Every institution, company and community and every individual has a responsibility to act with the urgency and seriousness that matches the gravity of climate change,” said Keating.

Dr. Mutharika also unveiled the national strategy and plan of action, the National Adaptation Programmes of Action (NAPA), which has been developed by the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources.

NAPA is the vehicle which will drive concrete measures to tackle effects of climate change and prioritises the creation of buffers for the poor and most vulnerable from socioeconomic implications of climate shocks.

Elaborating on Malawi’s policies and programmes, Hon. Khumbo Chirwa, Minister for Lands and Natural Resources said that the loss of human, natural, financial, social and physical capital, caused by floods, drought and landslides, is of great concern to the Government, as it strives to ensure sustainable livelihoods for all its citizens.

The Minister said the adaptation strategy, developed in consultation with development stakeholders, will increase the ability of especially vulnerable communities to build resistant capacity to climate shocks and focuses on eight sectors – agriculture, land use and forestry, fisheries, energy, wildlife, water, human health and gender as a cross cutting issue.

In accordance with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Government conducted studies to assess the country’s vulnerability to climate change. The studies showed Nsanje, Chikwawa, Mangochi, Salima and Karonga are areas that are most vulnerable and already the hardest hit by drought and floods.

Women draped in chitenge with the 2007/2008 HDR logo entertain guests at the colourful event in Lilongwe.

Against a backdrop of limited but growing agro-processing activities, heavy dependence on rain-fed agriculture and biomass for household energy, Malawi is highly vulnerable to extreme weather events. This situation is exacerbated by a rapidly growing, mostly rural population which is increasing the pressure on limited land, land degradation arising from agricultural expansion and the cultivation of marginal lands, and increasing deforestation to meet energy, food and construction purposes.

The country relies on Shire River for power generation, and only 10 percent of the population has electricity. The rest rely on solid fuels – charcoal and firewood for energy. Forest cover has been depleted tremendously and children increasingly suffer from respiratory diseases due indoor air pollution. NAPA proposes to diversify energy sources and increase reforestation of the Upper, Middle and Lower Shire Valleys catchments to arrest siltation. The Government also hopes to expand the use of ethanol stoves.

Lake Malawi is a major tourist attraction. It has one of the world’s largest varieties of cichlids and is also a breeding site for migratory birds. Fishing accounts for 60% of animal protein and a major source of income for many Malawians. The lake’s level has had highs and lows but the general trend over time is the level is declining, partly due to climate change.

Climate shocks can impact water availability and result in children and women spending more time collecting water and not attending school or engaging in productive activities. The potential long-term effects include malnourishment and stunting in children increased. Studies in Niger and Kenya have shown that more than 50% of children born in a drought year had stunted growth.

Following two years of bumper harvests, the country has increased the national grain reserve and benefited from foreign exchange after selling maize to neighbouring countries. With expanded meteorological monitoring networks, and better early warning systems for farmers, the country can prepare agricultural activities better suited to forecasted weather patterns, but this requires significant technical and financial investment.

The country needs to increase water harvesting, by constructing dams and reservoirs, a key recommendation in the HDR for countries with erratic rainfall patterns.

Sub-Saharan Africa is already experiencing erratic weather patterns affecting food production and increasing the risk of disease and reduced economic growth, and it requires the support of wealthy countries to adapt and prevent reversals in recent gains of the share of people living in extreme poverty.

While the picture may be gloomy, Keating said there are more opportunities for international cooperation. He said increasing access to modern and clean energy services to put Malawi on a low carbon development path will need to be paid internationally. “Malawi will need to team up with the rest of Africa to demand a global greenhouse gas stabilisation target and equitable access to global carbon trading.”

Keating has lauded the Government and Development Partners Working Group that was constituted last December and which will provide technical direction and ensure the integration of climate change into all sectors within the development agenda.

Along with other donors, UNDP is supporting implementation of immediate priorities as identified in the NAPA and is appealing for increased financial and technical support to implement the country’s efforts.

Though Africa’s carbon footprint is the lightest, Africa will pay the heaviest price for the effects of climate change. “While our priority is to step up adaptation plans, every one has a responsibility to tackle the problem no matter how small their carbon emissions,” said Keating. He said that more money will be required to respond to disasters unless both developed and developing countries take action now.

Fighting climate change was a platform for negotiations at last December’s Bali conference on climate change. According to UNDP, the Bali Action Plan on climate is one of the most complex and ambitious global negotiation processes for the global community to rethink the structure, logic and potential of human development – by putting the needs of the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people at the centre of a new, post-Kyoto climate change regime.

Building on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Synthesis Report, Fighting climate change stresses that a narrow 10-year window of opportunity remains to put it into practice.

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For further information, please contact
Ministry of Lands & Natural Resources: Mr. Ralph P Kabwaza, Director of Environmental (+265) 9 282 472
Ministry of Information & Civic Education: Arthur Chipenda (+265) 09 919090 arthur.chipenda@information.gov.mw
United Nations, Malawi: Susan Muguro (+265) 09 967 991 susan.muguro@undp.org

ABOUT THE HDR REPORT: The Human Development Report continues to frame debates on some of the most pressing challenges facing humanity. It is an independent report commissioned by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Kevin Watkins is the Lead Author of the 2007/2008 report, which includes special contributions from UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of Brazil and Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg of the City of New York. The Report is translated into more than a dozen languages and launched in more than 100 countries annually. Further information can be found at http://hdr.undp.org/en/reports/global/hdr2007-2008/ The 2007/2008 Human Development Report is published in English by Palgrave Macmillan.

ABOUT NAPA: NAPA was developed with the primary objective of identifying and promoting activities that address urgent and immediate needs for adapting to the adverse impacts of climate change among rural communities in vulnerable areas of the country. This will initially focus on the adaptation needs in the agriculture, water, energy, fisheries, land use change and forestry, wildlife, human health and gender sectors. The Malawi Government signed the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) during the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) that was held at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 1992. Malawi ratified the UNFCCC on 21st April 1994.

ABOUT UNDP: UNDP is the UN’s global network to help people meet their development needs and build a better life. We are on the ground in 166 countries, working as a trusted partner with governments, civil society and the private sector to help them build their own solutions to global and national development challenges. Further information can be found at www.undp.org