UNDP to support Malawi deal with climate vulnerability
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has pledged to support Malawi in addressing the needs of vulnerable communities affected by climate change.
UNDP senior technical adviser for adaptation programming (global) Pradeep Kurukulasuriya pledged the UNDP’s support when he met the Malawi delegation at the UN conference on climate change in Warsaw, Poland.
The meeting focused on the $4 million project from the Least Development Fund (LDF) on strengthening climate information and early warning system in Malawi for climate resilient development and adaptation to climate change.
He said in an interview after the meeting: “This particular project will help Malawi develop own systems, so that the risks and uncertainities as they unfold can be better managed.
“This is just the beginning of many efforts. We are also very pleased to assist Malawi on its request to integrate climate into the national development planning process,” he said.
He described the meeting with Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Management officials, including Principal Secretary Yanira Mtupanyama, other government officials and UNDP country office, as fantastic.
“We are lucky, we are working with colleagues and friends who are very dedicated and passionate about these issues. We are looking forward to supporting them in their efforts to deal with challenges. So, we are very excited. We are looking forward to results of the project in the coming months,” concluded Kurukulasuriya.
Mtupanyama said government was excited to see the project start next year.
“We are ready. We are excited to see the project start,” said.
The project funded under the UNDP Global Environment Facility (UNDP-GEF) will be facilitated by UNDP and will be implemented by the Department of Climate Change and Met Services, Department of Water Resources in the Ministry of Water, and Department of Disaster Management.
The focus of the project is to enhance country’s capacity to monitor and forecast extreme weather; hydrology and climate change as well as make efficient use of hydro-meteorological information for generating early warnings and supporting long-term development plans.
