By Wezi Tjaronda
WINDHOEK
Namibians are among over a billion people in 100 countries who face a bleak future due to climate change.
The 100 countries include all African countries except South Africa, Polar Regions, the Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and the Mega Deltas particularly in Asia. An opinion piece published by the International Institute for Environment and Development said these countries have their resilience eroded by poverty, degraded or threatened environments and other problems.
“The harsher, more frequent natural disasters that are predicted could tip them over the edge into chronic famine or forced migration,” the opinion piece said.
The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change has recognised that SIDS, and Africa as being particularly vulnerable and add to this list of Least Developed Countries (LCDs).
The statement said taken together, the countries form one group of 100 nations who are the most vulnerable even though their carbon dioxide emissions account only for 3.2 percent of the global total.
In comparison, the USA emits 23.2 percent, the EU 24.7 percent, 15.3 percent for China and 4.5 percent for India.
The most vulnerable countries, which make up a significant number of parties to the convention and the Kyoto Protocol and the 131 G77 countries, emit a tiny proportion of the total amount of greenhouse gases from human sources and a negligible amount relative to the emissions from major emitting countries.
“So while these countries and their people (particularly poorest communities within them) will suffer severely over the next decade or two from the impacts of climate change, they bear minimal responsibility for creating the problem,” said the opinion article.
The two advocated for a strong mitigation and adaptation support saying if during the time these counties and regions emitting the most primarily the US, EU, China and India fail to introduce strong mitigation measures, the impacts on the Most Vulnerable Countries (MVC) over the longer term could be catastrophic.
Saleemul Huq, head of climate change at International Institute for Environment and Development IIED, and Jessica Ayres of the London School of Economics authored the two-page briefing on the 100 countries most vulnerable to climate change.