Climate change in Africa News

[The Conversation Africa] Thrips are tiny insects - their sizes range between 0.5mm and 15mm in length and many are shorter than 5mm. But the damage they cause to crops is anything but small. A 2021 research paper found that in Indonesia "the damage to red chilli plants caused by thrips infestation ranges now from 20% to 80%". In India, various thrips infestations in the late 2010s and early 2020s "damaged 40%-85% of chilli pepper crops in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana".

[Ghanaian Times] The Government's Anti-Flood Task Force on Wednesday took an aerial tour of Accra to ascertain the resilience of the capital to floods ahead of the rainy season.

[Ghanaian Times] About 2.6million people are projected to migrate down south from northern Ghana by 2050 if the current temperature trends continue, researchers have warned.

[Nyasa Times] Cyclone Jude, though no longer a direct threat to Malawi's weather, has left devastation in its wake, displacing 3,029 people and affecting 11,370 individuals.

[allAfrica]

[World Bank] STORY HIGHLIGHTS

[OCHA] Three days before Tropical Cyclone Jude made landfall in northern Mozambique, the United Nations Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) allocated US$6 million to help hundreds of thousands of people ahead of the storm.

[MSF] Somalia is facing a dire malnutrition crisis that has been worsened by prolonged droughts, ongoing conflict, economic instability, and a fragile healthcare system. The Baidoa and Mudug regions, where Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) works, are examples of the crisis unfolding across the country, with thousands of children at immediate risk of severe malnutrition and its life-threatening consequences.

[VOA] Blantyre, Malawi -- Tropical Cyclone Jude slammed into parts of southern Africa this week, causing no deaths but leaving widespread damage, especially in Malawi and Mozambique.

[Liberian Observer] CYCLES-LIBERIA, one of Liberia's leading advocacy grassroots environmental organizations, has stressed the importance of taking concrete actions against the negative impact of climate change on smallholder farmers in rural communities to help mitigate the current challenges.

[SAnews.gov.za] An orange level 6 weather warning has been issued for parts of KwaZulu-Natal over the next two days due to ongoing disruptive rains in the area.

[The Conversation Africa] When we think of climate change, we may consider extreme weather events - record-breaking heatwaves, heavy downpours and devastating floods. But have you considered that these changes could also increase your risk of exposure to certain viruses?

[Afrobarometer] Citizens say changing weather patterns have forced adjustments in crops, water sources, livestock.

[Capital FM] Nairobi -- The Kenya Meteorological Department has warned that heavy rains in several parts of the country even as it issued a flash-flood alert.

[Namibian] President-elect Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah has reportedly asked government officials to explain the viability of Namibia's green hydrogen programme.

[The Conversation Africa] With the world on the threshold of 1.5°C of warming, one pressing question is: how bad can it get? The answer may lie beneath our feet.

[Premium Times] The officials made the call during the Interfaith Dialogue on Climate Change Summit, organised by Connected Development (CODE) on Thursday in Abuja.

[WFP] Dakar -- The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) warns that life-saving food and nutrition assistance in Central Sahel and Nigeria will halt in April 2025 without urgent funding. This warning comes as the lean season - the period between harvests when hunger peaks - is anticipated to arrive earlier than usual this year across the Sahel region. Millions, including refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs), still rely on WFP's food assistance for survival.

[The Herald] Steady inflow improvements into two of the SADC region's major reservoirs for hydroelectricity generation along the Zambezi River have brightened prospects for power generation until the last quarter of this year.

[Capital FM] Nairobi -- Kenya and The United Kingdom have agreed to prioritize the advancement of key bilateral projects such as the Nairobi Railway City and climate action under the Africa Green Industrialisation Initiative.