UN Report: Africa's Glaciers to Disappear in Next 20 Years
2021-10-20
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1A new United Nations climate report predicts Africa's rare glaciers will disappear in the next 20 years.
2The report, called State of the Climate in Africa, was released Tuesday by the U.N.'s World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and other agencies.
3It warns that climate change will be the cause of the disappearing glaciers in eastern Africa.
4The report warns that the shrinking glaciers at Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, Kenya's Mount Kenya and the Rwenzori Mountains in Uganda are signs of widespread climate change to come.
5If the current shrinking rate continues, "it will lead to total deglaciation by the 2040s," the report says.
6The report notes that last year was Africa's third warmest on record.
7Data shows temperatures on the continent were 0.86 degrees Celsius higher than the average in the 30 years leading up to 2010.
8The WMO warns that Africa's 1.3 billion people remain "extremely vulnerable" as the continent keeps getting warmer at a faster rate.
9Petteri Taalas is Secretary-General of the WMO.
10He said in the report the shrinking of the last remaining glaciers in Africa "signals the threat of irreversible change to the Earth system."
11Massive displacement, hunger and increasing climate events such as droughts and flooding are likely to continue, Taalas said.
12He added that the lack of climate data in parts of Africa "is having a major impact" on disaster warnings for millions of people.
13Taalas said there is a great need for investments in Africa to develop systems and technology to help the continent deal with the effects of climate change.
14The money could be used to improve early warning systems and build equipment to better observe weather and water movements.
15The report was released ahead of a major U.N. climate conference set to begin October 31 in Glasgow, Scotland.
16It also came as African countries are demanding a new system to follow financing from wealthy nations that are failing to meet a $100 billion yearly target to help the developing world fight climate change.
17The demand shows the tensions that exist over climate change policies between the world's 20 largest economies and developing nations.
18The world's wealthiest nations produce about 75 percent of all carbon emissions.
19But Africa's 54 countries are responsible for less than 4 percent of the emissions.
20Estimates of the economic effects of climate change differ across the African continent.
21But the report suggests that in sub-Saharan Africa, "climate change could further lower gross domestic product (GDP) by up to 3 percent by 2050."
22Josefa Sacko of the African Union Commission writes in the report: "Not only are physical conditions getting worse, but also the number of people being affected is increasing."
23Sacko added that by 2030, up to 118 million people living on less than $1.90 a day "will be exposed to drought, floods and extreme heat in Africa" if preventive measures are not put in place.
24I'm Bryan Lynn.
1A new United Nations climate report predicts Africa's rare glaciers will disappear in the next 20 years. 2The report, called State of the Climate in Africa, was released Tuesday by the U.N.'s World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and other agencies. It warns that climate change will be the cause of the disappearing glaciers in eastern Africa. 3The report warns that the shrinking glaciers at Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, Kenya's Mount Kenya and the Rwenzori Mountains in Uganda are signs of widespread climate change to come. If the current shrinking rate continues, "it will lead to total deglaciation by the 2040s," the report says. 4The report notes that last year was Africa's third warmest on record. Data shows temperatures on the continent were 0.86 degrees Celsius higher than the average in the 30 years leading up to 2010. 5The WMO warns that Africa's 1.3 billion people remain "extremely vulnerable" as the continent keeps getting warmer at a faster rate. 6Petteri Taalas is Secretary-General of the WMO. He said in the report the shrinking of the last remaining glaciers in Africa "signals the threat of irreversible change to the Earth system." 7Massive displacement, hunger and increasing climate events such as droughts and flooding are likely to continue, Taalas said. He added that the lack of climate data in parts of Africa "is having a major impact" on disaster warnings for millions of people. 8Taalas said there is a great need for investments in Africa to develop systems and technology to help the continent deal with the effects of climate change. The money could be used to improve early warning systems and build equipment to better observe weather and water movements. 9The report was released ahead of a major U.N. climate conference set to begin October 31 in Glasgow, Scotland. 10It also came as African countries are demanding a new system to follow financing from wealthy nations that are failing to meet a $100 billion yearly target to help the developing world fight climate change. 11The demand shows the tensions that exist over climate change policies between the world's 20 largest economies and developing nations. The world's wealthiest nations produce about 75 percent of all carbon emissions. But Africa's 54 countries are responsible for less than 4 percent of the emissions. 12Estimates of the economic effects of climate change differ across the African continent. But the report suggests that in sub-Saharan Africa, "climate change could further lower gross domestic product (GDP) by up to 3 percent by 2050." 13Josefa Sacko of the African Union Commission writes in the report: "Not only are physical conditions getting worse, but also the number of people being affected is increasing." 14Sacko added that by 2030, up to 118 million people living on less than $1.90 a day "will be exposed to drought, floods and extreme heat in Africa" if preventive measures are not put in place. 15I'm Bryan Lynn. 16The Associated Press, Reuters and the WMO reported on this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the reports for VOA Learning English. Hai Do was the editor. 17We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page. 18___________________________________________ 19Words in This Story 20glacier - n. a large mass of ice that moves very slowly, usually down a hill of valley 21vulnerable - adj. easily hurt or harmed physically, mentally, or emotionally 22irreversible - adj. not being able to change something to the way it was before 23drought - n. a long period of time during which there is very little or no rain 24impact - n. the effect a person, even or situation has on someone or something 25emission - n. the act of producing or sending out something (such as energy or gas) from a source 26gross domestic product (GDP) - n. the total value of goods and services a country produces in a year