Tackle climate change impact on health—minister

Minister of Health Khumbize Kandodo Chiponda has urged African countries to find solutions to reduce the number of deaths, injuries and disabilities caused by climate-related health emergencies.

Opening a three-day regional workshop on Health and Climate Change in Lilongwe yesterday, she said the African continent is experiencing many devastating climate-related health emergencies, with 25 percent more events recorded between 2011 and 2021 than in the previous decade.

Chiponda observed that in nearly 2 000 public health events recorded in the region between 2011 and 2021, about 56 percent were climate-related and 40 percent were waterborne health emergencies.

She said: “Vector-borne diseases, including malaria, dengue and yellow fever, accounted for 28 per cent of climate-related health emergencies, while zoonotic diseases, notably Crimean-Congo Haemorrhagic Fever, transmitted to humans by ticks and livestock, with mortality rates of up to 40 percent, ranked third.

“In Malawi, immediately after the Cyclone Freddy disaster, we grappled with the cholera outbreak for a whole year.”

A latest World Malaria Report shows that there were 247 million cases of malaria with deaths estimated at 619 000 in 2021. The African region was home to about 95 percent of all malaria cases and 96 percent of deaths.

Projections indicate that  there will be up to 250 000 additional annual deaths in Africa due to climate-related factors by 2050.

African Institute for Development Policy (Afidep) executive director Eliya Zulu said at the 28th edition of the United Nations Conference of Parties on Climate Change, a full day has been dedicated to focus on health. He said this is progress in terms of increasing attention to such issues.

He said: “There are a lot of frustrations that richer countries are not really stepping up to fulfil their commitments made at CoP, through these meetings, we need to establish how best we can do to push for that to happen.”

Amref Health Africa group partnership and external affairs director Desta Lakew said the workshop is a significant step towards coming up with a common position and reverse the impact of climate on health.

Representing the Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance, global public health specialist Benson Simba said they are pushing for health mitigation as Africa remains a region of special needs and circumstances.

The conference, which has brought together partners such as Amref, the Wellcome Trust, Afidep, the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance and the World Health Organization, seeks to establish a unified Africa position on climate change’s health impacts, amplifying health considerations within climate strategies, and fostering consensus among stakeholders.