Acting on climate change for sustainable development in Africa:consensus statement

Abstract

The impacts of climate change have far-reaching implications for Africa’s growth, social, human and economic development, environmental sustainability, governance, peace and security and on sustainable development as a whole and that the negative impacts are particularly high for Least Developed Countries (LDCs), Small Island Developing States (SIDs) and the poor, mostly women and children, who tend to live in environments that are most susceptible to droughts, floods, desertification and other extreme climatic events. This Consensus Statement should feed into relevant international processes towards Cancun and beyond and further inform Africa’s common negotiating position on climate change. It should also form the basis for the preparation of an Action Plan on Climate Change that will be jointly prepared and implemented by AUC, ECA and AfDB, with UNEP as a strategic partner, and in collaboration with all stakeholders and other partners at regional, sub-regional, national and local levels.