Climate Change Vulnerability Hotspots in the East African Indian Ocean Islands.

Climate change exacerbates the multiple stressors of the economies of African countries frustrating the achievement of key development priorities. Like many Small Island Developing States (SIDS) in the world, the East African Indian Ocean islands are particularly at risk. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicts current impacts of climate change may likely exceed coping strategies making some islands and SIDS uninhabitable. The Indian Ocean Islands feel the impacts of climate change immediately and intensely because of their high exposure to natural disasters and their coastal and oceanic geographies. They are vulnerable to sea level rise and extreme weather events, which are becoming more severe and more frequent (due to climate change), causing damages to property and infrastructure, and even loss of life. The size and remoteness make SIDS and Indian Ocean Islands dependent on recourses imported and tourism revenue, increasing their vulnerabilities to pandemic threats such as COVID-19. According to the recently published IPCC report, the Indian Ocean has warmed faster than the global average, which means the region is likely to witness a continuous sea level rise, resulting in coastal erosion. As a United Nations specialized body with a mandate in science, UNESCO is highly committed to assisting the SIDS and Indian Ocean Islands to apply science, technology and innovation to build the adaptive capacities and resilience of communities and ecosystems to climate change. Over 30 UNESCO programmes in the sciences, education, culture and communication contribute to creating knowledge, educating and communicating about climate change, and to understanding the ethical implications for present and future generations. UNESCO supports policy makers so that Member States can meet their obligations under the Paris Agreement. Together with UNFCCC and other partners, UNESCO continues to provide guidance on the implementation of the education articles of the Climate Convention and of the Paris Agreement. At the policy level, UNESCO supports Member States in order to accelerate progress towards achievement of their commitments to the 2015 Paris Agreement. The Organization also ensures coherence between the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 4, Target 4.7 (which addresses Education for Sustainable Development, among others) and Sustainable Development Goal 13 (which addresses climate change). This publication, which accentuates the climate vulnerability hotspots of the East African Indian Ocean Islands is timely and will help stakeholders identify areas needing critical interventions to avert climate-related risks. We are hopeful that the findings will also stimulate policy decisions that drive investments for resilience building in the Indian Ocean Islands in the East African region.

Bibliographic Details

Main Authors:	Ogada, Tom M., Partey, Samuel, Ramasamy, Jayakumar, Owade, Ombaka, Obunga, Patrick
Other Authors:	UNESCO Office Nairobi and Regional Bureau for Science in Africa
Format:	Report biblioteca
Language:	English
Published:	UNESCO Regional Office for Eastern Africa 2022
Subjects:	Climate Change, Natural Hazards, Islands, SIDS,
Online Access:	http://hdl.handle.net/1834/42285
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