ECOWAS Parliament Warned of Climate Change Threat to Farmers, Vulnerable Groups

News in Brief:

— Experts urge ECOWAS Parliament to address climate change's threat to regional stability at the Second Extraordinary Session.

— They presented evidence of how climate risks affect livelihoods, infrastructure, resources, and food self-sufficiency.

Experts at the ongoing Second Extraordinary Session of the ECOWAS Parliament in Ghana have drawn regional leaders' attention to climate change's impact on farmers and other vulnerable people. 

Reflecting on the session's theme, speakers pointed to how rising temperatures, extreme weather, drought and unpredictable flood-causing rainfall are putting growing pressure on community livelihoods across West Africa.

ECOWAS Parliament Opens Climate Discussion

ECOWAS Parliament member, Hadja Memounatou Ibrahima, opened the forum to recognise the host country’s Founder’s Day celebration.

Then, Dr Derek Sarfo-Yiadom, Senior Programme Officer, Climate Change and Ozone Directorate, Ghana’s Environmental Protection Authority, shifted focus to the urgency of climate hazards.

In his presentation on climate change in West Africa, including risk areas, vulnerabilities and implications for regional stability, he sounded the alarm that climate change's hazards are now realities affecting communities across the region and not distant threats.

He cited extreme heat, drought, heavy and unpredictable rainfall, rising sea levels and other weather-related events now rampant in the region, and he explained how their impact becomes disastrous when exposed communities lack the capacity to cope.

Farmers and Low-Income Households Suffer the Most

According to Dr Sarfo-Yiadom, seasonal temperatures have risen by between one and three degrees Celsius since 1970, contributing to hotter heatwaves and increasingly unpredictable weather patterns.

He noted that changing rainfall patterns were also increasing flood risks while drought and heat were putting pressure on farming and livelihoods.

The environmental protection expert identified farmers, low-income communities, coastal settlements and displaced populations among groups particularly vulnerable to climate change effects. He also highlighted risks to homes, irrigation, electricity, transport networks, ports, markets and public services in his presentation.

Dr Sarfo-Yiadom warned that climate change was not only an environmental issue but also had social and economic consequences. The expert therefore called for increased investment in adaptation, flood-proof zoning and expanding climate-risk mapping. He also urged governments to ensure early-warning systems reach vulnerable communities and that public authorities remain accountable for climate-related spending.

Climate Change Pressure on Resources and Sustenance

Dr Abdou Ali, a climate, water and meteorology expert with the Permanent Inter-State Committee for Drought Control in the Sahel (CILSS), examined climate and resource pressures in West Africa.

He focused on drought, land degradation and food insecurity, noting the importance of regional cooperation in addressing climate risks that cross national borders.

He highlighted the need for member states to share climate information, data, technical expertise and climate services. The presentation further examined existing international, continental, regional and national frameworks for responding to climate change. Dr Ali revealed that regional cooperation is essential because climate risks do not stop at national borders.

He emphasised that agriculture, coastal areas, biodiversity, disaster risk and human displacement require coordinated adaptation measures. He also pointed to the importance of integrating climate action into agriculture, forestry, energy, transport, industrialisation and waste management policies.

The expert added that regional strategies needed adequate financing, stronger institutions, and effective implementation mechanisms.

Call for Harmonised Regional Action

In another presentation on the ECOWAS regulatory and institutional framework and the need to translate climate commitments into regional action, the Principal Officer, Climate Change and Climate Services at the ECOWAS Commission, Mr Raoul Kouame, held that the union needed to harmonise regional climate policies and standards while supporting member states to implement their commitments under the Paris Agreement.

He identified institutional fragmentation, differences in national capacities and difficulties accessing climate finance as challenges affecting climate action across the region.

Kouame called for stronger coordination between regional and national institutions and for member states to share experiences. He also advocated mechanisms to help countries develop national frameworks relating to regional climate structures. According to him, regional cooperation should cover climate services, early warning systems, forest and ecosystem protection, carbon markets and access to climate finance.

He expressed the need for the region to strengthen its capacity to access available climate funds and develop innovative financing mechanisms to support implementation.

He also believed that ECOWAS plays an important role in providing regional solidarity and helping member states implement their climate commitments more effectively.