CLIMATE CHANGE IN AFRICA: What we know, what we don’t, and where we should go from here
By Eyesiere Aniefon Essien and Lisa JenéClimate change is taking a toll across the African continent. While the world is increasingly recognizing the various ways in which climate change is negatively impacting African communities—from decreased agricultural productivity to increased incidence of natural disasters and even to heightened conflict—there remains much we as a global community do not fully understand. Improvements in technology and climate modeling, for example, will help forecasters predict changing weather patterns and warn against disasters. Yet, there is still one resource the international community is not adequately utilizing: the knowledge and insights of indigenous women, and rural African women in particular. We argue here for a radical approach that goes beyond simply elevating the voices of indigenous women; we argue for seeking them and providing them direct support, funding, roles, and platforms. As this goes beyond merely saving “seats at the table” for marginalized voices, we like to call this strategy “mobilizing the table”—i.e., bringing the important discussion to these communities, and to indigenous women especially.
What We Do Know About Climate Change in Africa:
By now, it is widely understood that climate change is having serious effects across Africa. Climate change has manifested on the continent in myriad ways, ranging from extreme heat, dust storms, and drought to floods, mudslides, and cyclones. Such extreme climatic events have far-reaching impacts on food security and livelihoods, physical and mental health, and economic and social development. Climate change is also commonly described as a “threat multiplier” for the onset of conflict, in that it has the potential to amplify more direct drivers of conflict, such as disputes over diminishing viable land and water resources. Climate change is also associated with increased migration, as it can drive people away from rural, farming areas to seek job opportunities in urban areas or foreign countries. Increasingly, the global community is acknowledging these phenomena.
We also know that climate change is an increasingly serious threat across Africa. Africa is, and will likely continue to be, the continent most vulnerable to the negative effects of climate change. The continent’s vulnerability to climate change is driven by a range of factors, including: high rates of warming; high rates of
rainfall volatility; fragile soils that have difficulty retaining moisture; high dependence on ecosystem goods for livelihoods (such as subsistence farming and firewood collection); high dependence on rain-fed agriculture; a less developed agricultural production system; and weak adaptive capacity. There is, of course, important variation across the continent, as some areas are getting wetter and others are getting drier. This includes variations within and between regions. For example, West Africa is hit hard by both dust storms from the Sahara Desert and by intense monsoons. East Africa, for its part, has been suffering from shorter but more intense rainfall—a phenomenon often referred to as the “East Africa paradox.”
The risk of climate change on agricultural production, food security, water resources, and ecosystem services will likely have increasingly severe consequences on lives and sustained development prospects across Africa.
What We Don’t Know About Climate Change in Africa:
While there is growing acknowledgement of the various effects climate change has on Africa and its people, there is still much we as a global community do not fully understand. For instance, while we know that climate change interacts with conflict, migration, and development, we lack knowledge about the precise workings of these interactions.
Technology is also insufficient. Early warning systems (EWSs), for example, for natural disasters on the continent are still underdeveloped. Existing drought monitoring mechanisms in Africa tend to rely on conventional drought monitoring methods, which suffer from limitations related to reliability, adequacy, objectivity, and timeliness. Moreover, many existing EWSs do not adequately communicate warnings to vulnerable communities at the local level, and therefore do not achieve their primary purpose.
Much of our lack of knowledge stems from the fact that there are still high levels of uncertainty around climate change modeling in Africa. Models predicting temperature tend to be a bit more reliable than precipitation-predicting models, but anticipating drought and other extreme risks require a thorough understanding of both as well as other climatic dynamics within the region and elsewhere. Lack of monsoon measurements, for example, have limited observers’ ability to make accurate predictions about not only heavy rains but also droughts, dust storms, and agricultural productivity.
Some advancements in modeling have been made, giving us some cause for hope. For example, new and improved global climate models are for the first time able to adequately represent thunderstorm systems. Researchers in Cameroon are using this technology to explore the linkages between central and southern African climate systems, thereby breaking from the traditional focus on regional climatic systems. Moreover, African climate scientists have helped the Future Climate for Africa (FCFA) program (part of the UK’s Department for International Development and Natural Environment Research Council) improve their models, and thereby their understanding, of African climates. Innovative technology and thinking are both necessary for advancing our global understanding of climate change across Africa, as is elevating the voices most connected to the environment.
Our global understanding of the indirect effects of climate change across the continent are especially limited. Climate change is typically described as a threat multiplier for conflict because it has the potential to intensify other stressors that may lead to violent outbreaks. Yet, the when, how, and why of the various pathways linking climate change to conflict are not well understood by the global community. This lack of understanding makes it difficult to enact measures to prevent or at least mitigate the outbreak of climate-related conflict. Indigenous communities have a much better understanding of these linkages, and so seeking out their knowledge and input is vital.
Similarly, while there is a general consensus that rising urbanization rates across Africa are at least partially driven by climate change, we are only beginning to understand what this means for both rural and urban areas. For one thing, the push factors driving people to migrate to urban areas—e.g., better education or employment opportunities—are not always met with the corresponding pull factors. That is, African cities may not be adequately equipped to welcome such migrants in terms of jobs, housing, or infrastructure. Urbanization in Kenya, for example, is associated with a rise in informal settlements (or “slums”). These settlements are often afflicted by poor waste management, risk of sexual assault (especially for women and girls), and inadequate social services, such as a lack of nearby water pumps or health clinics. Informal settlements are also prone to the development of hotter “micro-climates” caused by poor home construction materials, poor ventilation, lack of green space, and lack of access to electrical power and other cooling options.
The global community is only now beginning to understand the disproportionate effects that climate change has on African women and girls. As we are increasingly learning, climate change is not gender-neutral, and neither are the far-reaching
consequences of climate change—including natural disasters, conflict, and urbanization. African women on average tend to be poorer and have fewer economic opportunities compared to their male counterparts. This disparity increases the vulnerability of women during times of crisis, disaster, or shock. Women and girls are also extremely vulnerable to assault or exploitation during periods of conflict as well as in emergency camps and other informal settlements. Moreover, the additional responsibilities brought on by natural disasters most often fall onto the shoulders of women and girls. Yet, it is important to remember that women and girls are not simply victims characterized by vulnerability and hardship. Quite the contrary, we have much to learn about climate change and how to respond to it from indigenous women in particular, as will be discussed in more detail below.
Where Do We Go From Here?
Climate justice and listening to indigenous women
The world is only just beginning to wise up to the valuable insights indiginous women have to offer in terms of understanding and addressing the negative impacts of climate change. Many scholars recommend simply listening to indigenous women. As populations with deep historical connections to their surrounding environment, they have their fingers on the pulse of even slight climatic changes. If the rainy season comes late or is more intense than usual, they are acutely aware of this and what it means for harvesting, selling, and surviving. Listening to these communities could mean building on local knowledge and incorporating that knowledge into new types of sustainable solutions and mitigation and adaptation strategies.
Listening to indigenous women is also an important element of achieving climate justice. Mary Robinson, the former President of Ireland and the current Chair of the Elders, described “climate justice” as “a shift from a discourse on greenhouse gases and melting ice caps into a civil rights movement with the people and communities most vulnerable to climate impacts at its heart,” said Mary Robinson who is no stranger in the world of politics and human rights.” Thus, climate justice is about reframing the issue of climate change as a true civil rights issue.
The world’s long history of resource extraction and environmental degradation (and benefits thereof) is inextricably linked to the legacies of colonialism, making economic and ecological oppression inherently intertwined. Climate justice therefore further requires accepting responsibility for the current ramifications of
this history. Africans have contributed only a miniscule amount to the current climate crisis, yet they suffer disproportionately from the negative side effects. Developed nations, on the other hand, have overwhelmingly contributed to climate change, yet suffer the fewer negative effects.
Climate justice also requires centering women and girls. As Phumzile MlamboNgcuka, Under-Secretary-General of the UN and Executive Director of UN Women, stated:
Gender-responsive climate and environmental action starts with ensuring women have equal access to productive resources, such as finance, land, water and clean energy. It must also support women’s skills-building, advocacy and access to technologies, with disaggregated data to inform planning and action.
Furthermore, the Generation Equality Forum’s Action Coalition on Feminist Action for Climate Justice emphasized the need to finance and support women and girls at the rural, grassroots levels in their efforts to respond to climate change. This includes increasing the number of women in environmental leadership roles and jobs as well as ensuring equitable access to climate finance and technologies. The Action Coalition also called for respecting and amplifying the “voices and solutions of grassroots and indigenous women.” Similarly, Balikoowa et al. (2019) advocate for “proactive interventions”—e.g., those that increase women’s adaptive capacity—rather than focusing just on protectionist programs that aim at reducing vulnerability.
Mobilizing the Table
Listening to indigenous women is an important, yet often overlooked, element of achieving climate justice. We argue that the global community cannot simply wait around for these voices to be given a platform; instead, we must hand them a microphone. With indigenous women and girls being disproportionately affected by and disproportionately knowledgeable about climate change, it only makes sense to not only amplify but also intentionally seek out their input. It is commonly stated that marginalized communities must be given a “seat at the table,” meaning underrepresented voices must be incorporated into discussions about climate strategies. We, however, propose an additional, more intentional strategy—i.e., what we like to call “mobilizing the table.” This involves bringing the table to underrepresented voices, e.g., by approaching these communities with platforms of expression, direct financing, and other forms of direct support.
Rural African women, and especially elder women, hold a wealth of knowledge about conservation and they have demonstrated a keen ability to develop and integrate adaptive measures. African women, for example, have been among the first to notice the changing climate and its various consequences; these include changes to weather patterns, agricultural productivity, and livelihood security. As the custodians of many natural resources, rural African women are not only acutely intune with climatic changes, they are also uniquely poised to determine the best mitigation and adaptation strategies. Their voices therefore deserve to be at the forefront of climate change discussions, strategizing, and approach development. The global community has a lot to learn and gain from indigenous women in Africa and around the world, and it’s high time that we actively seek out and spotlight them. So much depends on it.
Eyesiere Hope Essien is Outreach and Engagement Coordinator for the WCAPS (Women of Color Advancing Peace and Security) Climate Change Working Group (CCWG). She is currently based in Nigeria, and plans to continue her high education studies in the US. She can be reached at: Lareine82137@gmail.com.
Lisa Jené is co-chair of the WCAPS CCWG. She has a PhD in political science and is a research consultant and writer in Baltimore, MD USA. She can be contacted at: LisaJene28@gmail.com.
1.Here we refer to the global community as international policymakers, donors, scholars, and activists
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Mobilizing the Table
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