Extreme weather events increasing in intensity in Africa: Greenpeace report

Temperatures and extreme heat events are expected to increase across the continent



By DTE Staff
Published: Wednesday 11 November 2020
Dry scrubland in the Sahel. Photo: Pixabay


A new scientific report by international non-profit Greenpeace has found that extreme weather events like heatwaves, floods and intense rain are increasing in intensity, frequency and severity across many parts of Africa.

The report titled Weathering the Storm: Extreme Weather and Climate Change in Africa, released November 10, 2020, predicted that:

Future average temperatures in Africa are projected to increase at a rate faster than the global average in all warming scenarios

The mean annual temperature increase for much of Africa is projected to exceed by two degrees Celsius or fall within the range of 3-6 ℃ by the end of the 21st century if high emissions continue — two to four times beyond the rise permitted in the Paris Agreement

The rising temperature is likely to lead to deaths, displacement, climate-related conflict, irregular rainfall, drinking water shortages, obstruction of agricultural production and accelerated extinction of endemic African species

The frequency, intensity and duration of extreme heat events are expected to increase, following trends already observed in southern, eastern and northern Africa

From the second half of the 20th century, heatwave duration and intensity increased over parts of Africa, most notably parts of southern Africa, East Africa and the north of the continent. At the same time, South Africa was projected to become drier in the west and southwest, and wetter in the east.

The report said climate change was one of the biggest challenges that African societies were facing and will continue to face this century and beyond.

Many African communities are vulnerable to the impacts of extreme weather events because of their limited ability to cope and adapt to those events. Limited resources in terms of access to technology, skill development and economic capacity contribute to low levels of possible adaptation, the report said

“There needs to be better incorporation of indigenous knowledge in scientific evidence on extreme weather events in Africa,” Ndoni Mcunu, climate scientist, founder of Black Women in Science and co-author of the report, said.

African countries needed to be more involved in leading the development of new databases and models rather than being dependent on countries outside Africa, she added.

This would ensure better communication, planning and future projects of events. Access to information needed to be provided at a community level, Mcunu said.

“Over the last 50 years, we have already experienced a warming of 1.5℃, well over the world average. In the Sahel, climate change destroyed our crops, our homes and tore families apart through forced migration,” Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim, director of the Association for Indigenous Women and Peoples of Chad, said.

“But Africa is not only at the stage where the worst climate impacts will play out. It is a continent of millions of citizens determined to stop climate change, to move away from fossil fuels, who will stand up to protect our forests and our biodiversity from industrial agriculture,” Ibrahim added.

Prevention, not mitigation needed to solve South Africa’s plastic problem: WWF

Interventions needed across plastic value chain rather than just waste management

By Madhumita Paul
Published: Monday 09 November 2020
Plastic waste. Photo: Meeta Ahlawat / CSE


Multiple stakeholders across the ‘plastics value chain’, with a strong focus on prevention rather than mitigation, were what South Africa needed to solve its plastic problem, a new report by the World Wide Fund for Nature has said.

More than half — 52 per cent — of the plastic raw material produced in and imported into South Africa is used for packaging applications.

It is responsible for the largest volumes of leakage into nature, according to the report titled South African Plastics Facts & Futures Report, released November 4, 2020.

Packaged products such as sanitary towels, disposable nappies, cigarette butts and certain types of fishing gear are responsible for plastic leakage into nature, the report added.

Packaging is also used to pack food items. However, almost half the plastic goods consumed in South Africa are designed for a short lifespan for intended use of less than 1-3 year. They are often disposed of after a single use, the document noted.

There has been a more than 50 per cent increase in processed and packaged food available and consumed in South Africa since 1994. In 2017 alone, the South African crisps market increased by 10.4 per cent.

Some 1,600 tonnes of plastic packaging waste is generated annually in South Africa due to a billion units of crisps, biscuits and chocolates being sold through formal retail markets in the country.

There was limited monitoring and reporting of comprehensive data for plastic material flows in South Africa, the report said. Gaps included data on indirect plastic imports and exports, waste generation and leakage.

The report said recycling was not a solution although South Africa had a vibrant recycling industry.

Instead, interventions were needed across the plastic value chain rather than just the waste management sector, it said.



Used vehicles on Africa’s roads: UN report flags environment concerns

At least 60% vehicles on Africa’s roads are used and imported; regulations weak in as many as 44 countries

By Kiran Pandey
Published: Friday 30 October 2020

West African nations may get a deluge of used, imported cars from the European countries, which will introduce stricter emissions compliance testing from 2021. Germany and the Netherlands will measure particulate emissions of diesel vehicles at their annual inspections next year.

But, a significant number of diesel vehicles in these countries may not pass the test and could be exported to African nations, a first-of-its-kind United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) report has warned. This may impact West African nations such as Nigeria, which is the major importer of ‘used cars’ from the EU and do not have any strict norms around them, the report said.

These used vehicles pump out fine particulate matter and nitrogen oxides, which are major sources of air pollution, and threaten the environmental health of African nations, the report flagged.


Since January 1, 2021, all used light-duty vehicles would need to meet Euro 4 vehicles emission standards in the West Africa. As of July 2020, however, only Nigeria and Libya had adhered to the emission standards, which, too, were low at Euro 3 level.

Under the Euro 4 emissions standard introduced in 2006 across Europe, diesel cars were found to emit 27 times more particulate matter (PM) than petrol cars and 10 times more NOx.

But Nigeria, the largest importer of used cars in the world, has been importing cars that are over nine years old.

Of the total vehicles registered every year in Africa, 60 per cent are used vehicles. But regulations are weak in nearly 82 per cent of the region (44 countries), including Burundi, The Democratic Republic of Congo, Libya, Nigeria and Uganda, where government has allowed import of vehicles that are older than nine years.

Of the 100 (out of 146) countries with no standards for emissions from light duty vehicles (LDVs), 46 are in Africa, revealed the UNEP report.

The report, therefore, indicated the possibility of increase in export of ‘used cars’ to Africa and urged strict regulations for exporting and the importing nations.

It said the stricter an importing country is on regulating the import of used vehicles and associated technology, the cleaner and more efficient the vehicle technology brought into a national market.

When combined with appropriate fuel quality in the importing country, used vehicles that meet emission standards can lower the impact from both carbon dioxide (CO2) and non-CO2 emissions.

Exports to Africa

Africa is the destination for fourth out of every 10th used car exported by three leading exporters — European Union, Japan and the United States.

But in the absence of any regional or global agreements for the exporter and the importer to govern the flow of used vehicles, the continent is flooded with old, unsafe, inefficient and polluting vehicles flagged the UNEP report.

The UNEP report focused on low-duty vehicles (LDVs), since most used vehicles traded around the world fall in this category.

From 2015-2018, Africa received the largest share of exported LDVs from the three countries. Of the 14 million LDVs exported by them, 5.6 million were sold to African nations.

Only 10 out of 54 countries in the continent have ‘good’ or ‘very good’ used vehicles policies, the report added.

Of the 146 countries studied in the UNEP report, about two-thirds had ‘weak’ or ‘very weak’ policies regulating the import of used vehicles. Many imported vehicles would not be allowed to circulate on the roads of exporting countries, noted the report.

Regulating the trade of used vehicles is essential to ensure the quality of the vehicles and reduce vehicular air pollution and global climate emissions, the UNEP said.


This becomes even more important when the global fleet of light-duty vehicles is likely to double by 2050 and nearly 90 per cent of this growth will take place in low- and middle-income countries, including African nations.

Other concerns

At least 79 of the 146 countries do not have any age restriction on the import of used vehicles. Of these 30 are in Africa, the report said.

For example, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Tanzania and Zimbabwe do not have any age restrictions in place for importing light duty vehicles (LDVs).

While 20 countries in the continent have placed a maximum age limit on used vehicle imports, the norms are not very strict, the report flagged. Only 11 countries in the continent have banned used vehicles over five years.

Only four countries in the continent — Egypt, South Africa, Seychelles and Sudan — have imposed a total ban on used vehicles. But, this does not mean they do not import used vehicles. Some countries like South Africa import used vehicles, but then re-export them to other countries in the region, noted the report.

Citing case studies from Bhutan and Egypt, the UNEP suggested promotion of used low and no emissions vehicles like hybrid electric or electric vehicles as an affordable way for middle- and low-income countries.