A very good morning to you all. It is an honour and privilege for me to stand before you today to make this keynote address at this consultative meeting on preparedness and response to impacts of El Nino is Southern Africa. On behalf of the SADC Secretariat and indeed on my own behalf allow me to extend a very warm welcome to you.
Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen,
Over the years, El Nino has been mostly associated with reduced rainfall and droughts in most parts of the Region. The situation is not different this time around. Currently, southern parts of the region including South Africa, Lesotho, southern Botswana, Zimbabwe, southern Zambia and Malawi as well as parts of Mozambique and Democratic Republic of Congo have experienced some of the driest conditions in 35 years, causing severe water shortages, delayed crop planting and very low soil moisture that have led to wilting and stunting of crops, and death of livestock in some areas.
Since the majority of the SADC Region’s population depends on agriculture and related industries for livelihoods, the dry conditions are likely to cause severe food shortages and malnutrition. The situation on the ground looks worse as it follows another poor season last year which left many families vulnerable. We are already witnessing food shortages as well as the loss of power generation capacities and water shortages.
Estimates by the SADC Early Warning and Vulnerability Assessment systems indicate that up to 28 million citizens of the Region, about 10% of the total population, are already food insecure as a result of the poor harvest in 2015. The number of people living on less than a US$1 a day has also increased. In addition, the rates of malnutrition which are already high are becoming worse. Current estimates indicate that the majority of our Member States have stunting rates of higher than internationally acceptable 20% of the population.
Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, we are gathered here to discuss and come up with concrete plans of action on how to respond to these challenges.
The region has faced drought emergencies of this magnitude in the past and it was only due to the concerted action by the Member States and the Secretariat, working jointly with partners gathered here, that disasters were averted. For example, the 1991-1992 drought emergency led to the launching of a consolidated UN-SADC Drought Emergency in Southern Africa Appeal. This “appeal” provided a platform to raise awareness of the growing crisis in the region and brought about a regional drought response that saw the mobilisation of over 11 million metric tonnes of food into the region. While these efforts showed that working together in partnerships can avert disasters; they also showed that the region needs to put in place long-term measures to reduce vulnerability to these climate related hazards. It is therefore my wish that this gathering can come up with actions plans that can reduce the impact of the current and future droughts in the Region in both short and medium to long-term.
On its part, the SADC Secretariat has undertaken a number of initiatives aimed at improving disaster preparedness in the region. You may be aware that every year the Secretariat organises the Southern Africa Regional Climate Outlook Forum (SARCOF) which gives advance information on the expected rainfall performance and serves as a key component in the regional early warning system. The Secretariat also organises the Pre-season preparedness planning workshop, a platform on which disaster risk reduction authorities from SADC Member States deliberate on contingency plans for the upcoming season, based on inputs from the SARCOF. This is monitored through monthly updates on agro-meteorology posted on our websites during the season, culminating into food security and vulnerability assessments which are presented to Council and Summit every August.
Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, it is my expectation that this meeting will come up with actionable recommendations on how to address the impacts of current El Nino in our region. The action plans should emphasise the short term, medium and long term responses. The SADC Secretariat is ready to provide regional coordination with all our partner institutions in order to alleviate the socio-economic challenges we are facing as a result of the current climatic situation.
In conclusion, I wish to take this opportunity to thank the UN World Food Programme and the Food and Agriculture Organisation for joining the SADC Secretariat in organising and funding this consultative meeting. I also wish to express my sincere gratitude to all of you for sparing time from your busy schedules to come and attend this gathering. Let us keep this momentum going; together we can do it and change the tide.
Thank you for your attention.
