08 Mar 2023

An Okavango Research Institute - University of Botswana researcher has decried the slow action in integrating health into climate conversations.

Speaking at the ongoing Africa Health Agenda international conference in Kigali, Rwanda, Dr Vincent Pagiwa said many African countries lacked understanding of the linkage between climate change and health.

For that reason it was difficult for policy makers to include adaptation activities in health budgets leading to slow action in integrating health into climate conversations.

Dr Pagiwa, who is also in the Climate Health African Network for Collaboration and Engagement secretariat, nevertheless hailed the political will saying it created an opportunity for investment in climate health solutions.

He further said funding was now available for implementation of research that could inform climate-health actionable solutions and evaluate the existing interventions.

Dr Pagiwa urged policy makers to fast track establishment of policy frameworks and collaboration mechanisms to provide needed guidance and support for adaptation measures.

Earlier, an Egypt ministry of health official, Dr Mohammad Abd EL Fattah noted that African countries were the most confronted in terms of gobal food crisis and health security issues. 

Presenting on climate action in Africa, Dr Mohammad said Africa’s health issues should be brought to the COP28 negotiating table.

“Health challenges facing African countries have become more intertwined and complex, thereby necessitating the need to strengthen health systems to address common challenges,” he said. 

Dr Mohammad stressed the need for Africa to act as one so as to further explore and address the effects of climate change on health security.

He said even with its low contribution to greenhouse gas emissions, Africa remained the most vulnerable continent to climate change which posed major risks to its economies and threatened to reverse its development gains.

Climate change,  Dr Mohammed said, intensified diseases that were particularly prevalent in Africa.

Giving malaria as an example, he said warmer temperatures and more rainfall expanded the habitat for malaria-carrying mosquitoes, creating new potential hotspots for infections. ENDs