Malawi Pegs Climate Change Recovery at US$375m

Malawi Pegs Climate Change Recovery at US$375m

President Peter Mutharika says Malawi requires around $375m for its Climate Change recovery.

Mutharika said this when he addressed the Climate Change Summit in Madrid – Spain on Monday. He observed that the situation in Malawi is largely due to four major natural disaster incidents in the last five years.

The president added that every time there is natural disaster, crops fail, “the backbone of our economy gets broken and the economy falters.”

“We have to find this money,” he said.

Mutharika said if it were not for the disasters, Malawi would have made significant economic progress. Mutharika also addressed the summit as a representative of the Least Developed Countries of the world.

“The Least Developed Countries are doing their part. Our major challenge is resources. The Least Developed Countries are the least contributors to climate change and yet, we suffer most from the effects of climate change,” he observed.

In 2015, Malawi was hit by drought preceded by heavy rains and floods which washed away crop fields and destroyed infrastructure. Some people were also killed. In the 2017/2018 crop season, fall army worms, which thrive in dry spells, invaded crop fields followed by cyclone Idai and cyclone Kennedy in March 2019 which affected about million people

The president then urged developed partners to move one step forward in providing financial and technological resources.

Reacting to the statement, Chairperson of Parliamentary Committee on Natural Resources and Climate Change, Werani Chilenga, said what the president said is critical to environmental conservation in the country.

“We really need enough money so that we recover from deforestation that has been taking place across the country. We have lost quiet a number of trees in our forests in the country.

“I hope that with that money, we will be able to plant as many trees as possible and also support afforestation through regeneration; hence, be part of the global world in combating global emissions,” Chilenga said.

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Last modified on Thursday, 05/12/2019

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