The issue of climate change, which has so far worried the world’s population due to the serious consequences it is causing to humanity, or living things in general.
This problem is caused by human activities carried out every day due to the emission of greenhouse gases that are damaging it. These emissions come from industries, vehicles, electronic devices and various other sources.
In a training organized by Rwanda Environmental Journalists (REJ) with the support of (GIZ) Based on various reports, which show that developed countries are the ones emitting greenhouse gases at a high rate.They show that China emits 30% of greenhouse gases, the United States 15%, India 7%, Russia 5%, Japan 3%, and other developed countries are shown in these reports to be at the forefront of contributing to this problem.
These reports show that Africa is the continent that emits the least greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, at less than 5% of global emissions.Regardless of how countries and continents compete in emitting greenhouse gases, every country and continent is affected because they all share the same climate, but African countries or developing countries will be the ones that will be most affected by the consequences of this problem.
As various reports on climate change show, many different impacts are being seen on the world, caused by climate change due to greenhouse gas emissions.Examples are the increasing number of industrial fires in the world, rising temperatures, droughts, excessive sunlight, floods, rising sea levels, and deaths caused by air pollution.
For example, from 2019 to 2022, wildfires have been burning in various parts of the world, including Australia, Canada, Algeria, Italy, the Amazon rainforest, and other places around the world.All of these fires have had various impacts, including biodiversity loss, environmental degradation, and economic disruption.In terms of health, the World Health Organization (WHO) in its 2018 report shows that more people die from air pollution than from other diseases in the world.
Based on reports by experts on climate change, they show that if no action is taken to reduce the severity of this problem, some species will become extinct and some parts of the world will disappear, especially islands due to rising sea levels.
Due to the seriousness of this problem and the way it threatens the world’s population, the United Nations (UN) organizes an annual conference to study this issue called COP. This year, from 11-22/11/2024, it was held in Baku, Azerbaijan, called COP29.
It brought together countries represented by Heads of State and Government, one of the resolutions adopted at the meeting aimed at addressing the issue of climate change, including preventing the average global temperature increase from exceeding 1.5 degrees Celsius (1.5°C), based on the temperature level that existed before industrial development.
Financial assistance to developing countries, given that they will be the ones who will bear the brunt of the consequences of this problem, assisting them in technological activities, and building capacity in dealing with this problem, continuing to focus on the use of solar and wind energy, focusing on afforestation, establishing flood protection measures and other various measures that have been established at this meeting.
Speaking to mwamba.rw, Mukamana, a woman living in Huye Sector in Huye District, says that watering avocado trees using jerrycans is a way to prevent this. She further asks journalists to continue to provide them with information about climate change so that they know how it is used in daily life.
On the part of the Government of Rwanda, the President of Republic Paul Kagame announced during the meeting that in Rwanda, in order to address the impacts of climate change, a fund called “IREME INVEST” was launched with an amount of one hundred million dollars ($100 million) to support projects that promote the environment.
This fund comes in addition to other measures that Rwanda is currently implementing, which aim to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 38% by 2030, and various other projects that it has been implementing to protect the environment, including Green Gicumbi, relocating wetland residents, and various other activities aimed at protecting the environment, as shown on the websites of the Ministry of Environment, the Rwanda Environment Agency, REMA and FONERWA.
Sabiti Fred is Technical Advisor at Rwanda’s Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MINECOFIN) responsible for environment and climate change mainstreaming, says that, Some of the strategies that experts suggest could be used to combat the effects of climate change include the use of renewable energy sources. Examples include solar energy, wind energy, biogas, and reforestation.
The use of technology, such as electric vehicles.Using technology to irrigate crops, and implementing climate-sensitive daily activities, such as construction, agriculture, and others.
