EU Development Days 2007 - Lisbon - (1)

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BY 2020, UP TO 250 MILLION PEOPLE EXPECTED TO DIE IN AFRICA

“We are living a tragic paradox: those who contributed less to global warming are the ones who will suffer more for it.”


With these words European Commission President José manuel Barroso described the situation our world will go through.

We still have to realize that global warming is more serious than those boring speeches we try to avoid in the news.
Every day someone is already facing some of the most terrible consequences of global warming.

WORLD’S GARBAGE BIN

According to a survey of IUCN (an umbrella organisation which brings together 81 States, 114 government agencies, 800 NGOs and some 10,000 scientists and experts from 181 countries), Africa is considered to be among the most vulnerable regions of the world to climate change. And the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change predictions do not give space to optimism attesting that by 2020, 75-250 million people in Africa will be exposed to increased water stress with sensitive consequences for agricultural areas - and national economies - due to global warming effects.

Or, if you prefer to read it in simpler words, in some countries yields from rain-fed agriculture could be decreased by up to 50% by 2020.
And it is not over yet.

Local food supplies are also projected to be negatively affected by decreased fisheries resources in large lakes due to increased water temperatures, which may even be exacerbated by continued over-fishing.
Swimming in warmer water will just be a sad compensation.

FROM GLOBAL WARMING TO GLOBAL WARNING
“In 2003, the European Commission adopted an Action Plan for integrating climate change into our development agenda,” said Laura Schmidt of the European Commission during a panel discussion named Integrating Climate Change into Development Policies and Projects . “We have now prepared the first bi-annual progress report, which covers the progress we have made during 2004 to 2006.”

As often pointed out during the whole event, the strategy EU will try to bring forward is definitely ambitious, but projects as the one implemented in Zambia by the World Conservation Union with the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Finland or the EC intervention in Mauritania are a successful example of the efforts we are finally doing for changing the situation.

Between 1998 and 2001 the Commission, in partnership with the Governments of the recipient countries, the World Meteorological Organization and the World Bank granted €1.87 million for improving water management in the area, achieving results as a better assessment of water resources availability thanks to the development of a software database system with accurate and up-to-date regional data or the effecctive training of local hydrologists and technicians in operation and mantainance of the system.

“We are starting to make progress but a lot more needs to be done,” Ms. Schmidt admitted.

EU INTERVENTION CAN BE FUNDAMENTAL

President Barroso plays his role and shows some optimistic views on the future of these countries: “It will be possible for them, to skip some steps in the regular process of development” something that is likely to depend also from a European Union that “created the most ambitious strategy in the world” but which can not work alone as “only 14% of CO2 emissions is coming from Europe. We need concrete actions with important partners.”

An optimism that we do not want to slow down, because, together with Mr. Barroso, we share the dream of a Union able to ensure them -and us!- a better future from the one that has often been prospected during these Development Days.

A BITTER CONCLUSION

One small joke told by a Senegal guest is worth to be mentioned.
“When I told to a friend that I was about leaving to Lisbon for discussing the effects of global warming he asked me, why do you need to go there? I can show you everything from the window. Why do you need to go to Europe for discovering what is happening here?” Communication, as cooperation, is worth EU efforts.

Giovanni Angioni - Lisbon