ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (PAMACC News) – Science is essential to adapting to climate change, but indigenous knowledge systems can complement the wide use of climate information services (CIS), researchers say.Only by complementing scientific facts with indigenous knowledge upon which generations of communities have relied on to understand and manage the risk of changes in the climate and weather patterns, can Africa alter its narrative on climate information services, researchers highlighted this during discussions at conference on knowledge management hosted recently by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) in the Ethiopian capital.While science has been relied on for facts and figures on climate change impacts, the cultural and social understanding of the weather patterns provides a wealth of knowledge that can best inform development plans. Africa has experienced negative impact of climate change.The Paris Agreement The Paris Agreement, which went into force in November 2016 following ratification by 55 countries and by countries representing at least 55 percent of global emissions, offered new hope to reduce global emissions. However, critical debate on the impediments to climate change efforts is missing because Africa is not widely using information on climate services, said James Murombedzi, Coordinator of the African Climate Policy Centre (ACPC) under UNECA.Murombedzi said the lack of climate data and capacity to process available data on climate change has meant that climate information services remain peripheral to development strategy in Africa. He said there is need to popularize CIS products and their use through clear knowledge management and communication strategies.“Knowledge management is a key activity in the integration of climate information services and we need to improve the understanding of CIS in the political circles for effective policy formulation and implementation,” Murombedzi said. Murombedzi said Africa’s increasingly variable weather and climate threatens its development. Weather related shocks demand effective use and sharing of climate information and indigenous knowledge was a strategic tool in adaptation to climate change. Researchers are agreed that indigenous knowledge systems can reinforce the current knowledge base on climate change and provide sustainable solutions within communities where resilience has been deeply rooted in the lifestyle. Indigenous knowledge, defined by the United Nations Educational and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) as the ‘local knowledge that is unique to a culture or society which is passed from generation to generation, usually by word of mouth and cultural rituals, can help build resilience against climate change risks and promote sustainable development. IKS have for generations, been used as the basis for agriculture, conservation, food preparation, health and education that ensure the well-being of communities.Professor Joseph Matowanyika, Director of the Institute of Life Long Learning and Development Studies at the Chinhoyi University of Technology (CUT), said indigenous knowledge systems need to be incorporated into development planning, noting that Africa has structural challenges in adequately using information that is available on climate issues.“We do fail to fully utilize information in many other spheres of our livelihoods and economies," Prof. Matowanyika said. “Could it be that most of the information is not generated by…

YAOUNDÉ, Cameroon (PAMACC News) - The decision to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Agreement signals that the Trump Administration is in total discord with both reality and the rest of the world,a press release from Climate Action states.Civil society actors have been reacting to news of the withdrawal and are unanimous that the first to suffer from the injudicious decision is the American people. "This action is totally contrary to their best interests: their health, security, food supply, jobs and future," the release states. By turning its back on climate action, the Trump administration burdens the American people with rising costs and risks from pollution, environmental degradation and lost opportunities in a low-carbon economy and renewable energy jobs. None of this will make America great, in any way.The overwhelming show of support from the international community in the past weeks, defending the Paris Accord, is a reminder that the world is wasting no time on laggards when it comes to climate action.“Trump’s decision to pull the US out of the Paris Agreement is an act of global environmental vandalism that has the potential to do great harm to current and future generations. Even without the US as a party, Paris still represents our best chance of avoiding severe and destabilising climate change. The rest of the world must continue to build on Paris to speed the transition to a cleaner, lower-carbon world. The direction of travel is clear, and climate action will continue globally and within the US, as states and businesses continue to drive progress. In the meantime the commitment of the UK, the EU and other leading nations is more important than ever,” says Jonathan Church, lawyer, ClientEarth"As global temperatures hit record high every year now, the world is rightfully outraged by the decision to withdraw the US from the Paris Agreement. We welcome the strong statements from all other world leaders that their countries will not withdraw their commitments, goals, policies and actions related to climate change. Unlike the view of the current US administration, countries all over the world see the Paris Agreement as an engine for growth and jobs.The EU is already strengthening its alliances with countries like China and Canada, as well as those most affected by climate change. The EU needs to step up its game now, to trigger more climate action and smooth the way for scaling up the Paris climate pledges, " points out Wendel Trio, Director, Climate Action Network (CAN) Europe .For Catherine Abreu, Executive Director, Climate Action Network,Canada has quickly established a track record of collaborating and working across differences to launch coherent climate strategies. Now is the moment for Canada to take that to the next level, and emerge on the world stage as a bold climate leader. "Trump may be ready to abandon the benefits associated with climate action, including improved air quality and human health, job creation in emerging industries, and international influence. Yet it is clear that American states, communities, and businesses are not…

NAIROBI, Kenya (PAMACC News) - The U.S. President Donald Trump has finally made good his threat to withdraw his country from the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, in a move that has been condemned by leaders and personalities from all over the world including USA.During his campaign for U.S. presidency, Trump vowed to put ‘America first.’ But his decision to withdraw from an international agreement that has been signed by 194 and ratified by 147 countries has left America walking on a lonely path alongside Syria and Nicaragua."Donald Trump has made a historic mistake which our grandchildren will look back on with stunned dismay," Thomson Reuters Foundation quoted Michael Brune, the Executive Director, Sierra Club.In a statement released by Climate Justice Info, civil society representatives and social movement leaders from Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and the United States vowed to build people power to address the climate crisis despite Trump’s decision. "Climate change is not waiting for U.S. action and neither can the rest of the world,” said Ben Schreiber of the Friends of the Earth USA.“Trump has turned the U.S. into a rogue climate state and the world should use economic and diplomatic pressure to compel the U.S. to do its fair share,” said Schreiber adding that the majority of Americans do not support the president and his fossil fuel agenda that puts corporate profits above people. Sreedhar Ramamurthi of the Environics India pointed out that it is because of the historic U.S. pollution, that the world is already suffering the consequences of a rapidly warming world with droughts, fires, and floods wreaking havoc with livelihoods and lives, even displacing whole communities. “Trump wants to add to that historic pollution and condemn present and future generations in the global south to further suffering and death. We cannot allow this, there must be forceful political, legal, and economic consequences levied against the U.S. Trump must realise that in the case of climate, nature has the trump card and not him and his cronies," said Ramamurthi.Rachel Smolker of the BiofuelWatch USA also expressed her disappointment in Trump’s decision. "I am ashamed of my country's persistent role in undermining efforts to create a strong and binding agreement, now culminating in Trump's withdrawal from the Paris Agreement,” she said. “Here in the U.S. climate justice activists are scrambling hard to find a path forward from within. We hope our allies will let their voices be heard at U.S. embassies - to both isolate Donald Trump and his ilk - and apply pressure on the U.S. to step up and take responsibility for real and equitable solutions to the escalating climate catastrophe," added Smolker.In a statement to the media, Trump’s announcement was also highly regretted by the Secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The UNFCCC Secretariat also noted the announced intention to renegotiate the modalities for the US participation in the agreement. In that regard, the secretariat said it was ready to engage in dialogue with the United…

NAIROBI, Kenya (PAMACC News) - Kenya's President Uhuru Kenyatta and Dr Juan Clos, UN-Habitat Executive Director have called for concerted efforts to address the challenges facing cities, towns and urban areas.Speaking when he launched the 26th session of the UN-Habitat Governing Council in Nairobi, Uhuru said planned urban centres are key to better human life."This session is a milestone for UN-Habitat. It is the first meeting of the Governing Council after the adoption of the momentous 2030 Agenda for sustainable development and the New Urban Agenda. As you know, the 2030 Agenda is a comprehensive, integrated and inclusive outcome document," Uhuru said.The New Urban Agenda aims to achieve peace, prosperity, dignity and opportunity for all, on a healthy planet. It sets our global strategy around urbanization for the next two decades."I congratulate each and every one of you for your invaluable contribution to the success of Habitat III. That enterprise shows the power and promise of multilateralism," Uhuru said.The President said the document presents a renewed political commitment for sustainable development, and provides the basis for reviewing the mandate of the UN-Habitat and its positioning within the UN System."Our immediate responsibility is its implementation. We must quickly seize the opportunities, address the challenges and implement the Agenda. The first step – one we can take here and now – is to send a strong political message in support of the new Agenda," Uhuru said.Dr Clos said urbanisation worldwide, but most specifically in Africa, will be one of the most significant economic and social transformations in the next decades."The African continent is experiencing a shift towards more productive sectors of the economy, from the agrarian and extractive industries, towards industrial and service oriented economies," Clos said.He further noted that one of the most critical vehicles for this transmission is well-designed urbanisation that provides a productive scenario necessary to sustain this very strategic transformation for Africa.He noted that as a host of the UN-Habitat, Kenya remains fully committed to the agency and is ready to contribute constructively, and to work in partnership with the agency to secure the objectives of the important Session of the Governing Council."Let us consider the task that lies before us. Projections suggest that an additional 2.5 billion people will enter urban areas by 2050. Almost 90 percent of this increase is expected to occur in Asia and Africa. I need not add that this should be a matter of concern to all of us," Uhuru said.He noted that the challenge is equally clear here in Kenya."According to our National Bureau of Statistics, by 2050 about half our people will live in cities. Indeed, in 2030, the city of Nairobi will have about 6 million people," he said.He added, "For our part we have found that the creation of 47 counties under our new constitution has significantly influenced Kenya's urbanization: our new county governments will handle much of the implementation of the New Urban Agenda. That's because counties are the homes of the secondary cities, which are growing…