2021 World Habitat Day: UN-Habitat Executive Director Calls for Mutual Assistance to Eradicate Global Warming

The United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) Executive Director, Maimunah Mohd Sharif has called on Cameroonian authorities to work in collaboration with local administrators for a better planning of cities in order to limit the growing rate of global warming and its devastating effects.

She was taking in Yaoundé on October 4, 2021, on the occasion of the 35th edition of World Habitat Day hosted by Cameroon.

The event  was chaired by the Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Célestine Ketcha Courtès on behalf of the Prime Minister Head of Government, Chief, Dr. Joseph Dion Ngute.

Speaking  at the highly attended ceremony, the UN-Habitat Executive Director emphasized that the way cities are organised, constructed and managed is essential for reducing carbon emissions to keep global warming within the limits established (between 1.5 and 2 degrees Celsius) by the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change.

Statistics on climate change and its effects

According to the UN Department for Social and Economic Affairs, cities and villages are expected to have additional 2.5 billion people in the next 30 years that is an increase from 55% of people living in urban areas today to almost 70% in 2050. Cameroon has witnessed a decrease in rainfall since 1960, that is approximately -2.2% per decade, and an increase of the average temperature of +0, 7°C from 1960 to 2007. This has led to the loss of human life, massive migrations, epizootics, epidemics/pandemics, droughts, floods, landslides, and frequent storms.

The Cameroon National Climate Change Adoption Plan (NCCAP) warns that these phenomena will become more serious with a sea level rise between 9 and 38cm by 2050, and nearly 86cm by 2100.  Coupled with this, the high rate of urbanisation and other human activities that lead to pollution account for the destruction of the ozone, reason for the high rate of global warming experienced today.

Clarion Calls for Collective Actions

It was in this light that the UN-Habitat Executive Director, Maimunah Mohd Sharif called on administrators, local authorities, and the populations to work hand in glove to curb the growing rate of global warming speedily ravaging the planet earth today.

“Local government have an important role to play in adopting smart green systems and  promoting decentralized energies that it uses. For example, solar to produce cleaner and more accessible energy.  I call on national governments to include urban actions in their climate plan as they finalise and begin to implement a new round of nationally in their domains of contributions and i will like to say financial institutions and climate facility providers render access to local governments and Urban stakeholders to take climate actions in cities. We must take bold and ambitious climate actions, making them an integral part of a world without carbon from the global Covid-19 pandemic.”

On her part, the Minister of Housing and Urban Development in her capacity as the personal representative of the Prime Minister reminded that it was high time concrete actions were taken to achieve the “Race to Zero campaign,” which aims at reinforcing the objectives of the Climate Ambition Alliance launched at the UN Secretary- General’s Climate Action Summit in September 2019. “It is still possible with the political will and a wide range of technological measures to limit the rise in average global temperature. It involves collective action and urgent action,” insisted the MINHDU boss.

Virtual Intervention of International participants

It is worth recalling that the ceremony saw the intervention of International participants such as the Secretary General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, the first lady of Turkey, Emine Erdogan who was extremely active on waste issues and who recently received the Waste Wise Cities Global Champion award from UN-Habitat.

The observance also saw the intervention of Poland’s Secretary of State, Ministry of Funds and Regional policies, H.E. Malgorzata Jarosinska- Jedynak, the head of African Union’s Division Department of Political Affairs, Peace and Security, Issaka Garba, noble prize winners and goodwill ambassadors who campaign for healthy environments, among others. Cameroonian authorities such as ministers, Parliamentarians, and mayors were present in their numbers.

Award winners

The ceremony was also an occasion for UN-Habitat to recognize the efforts of International organizations aimed at promoting good practices for a favourable living environment. The five award winners that received scrolls of honour were the New Urban Committees Authority (NUCA), Egypt, received by Deputy Minister of Housing for National project, Eng. Khaled Mahmoud Abbas; Shining Hope for Committees (SHOFCA), Kenya, Gender Director, Caroline Salsa, Baoji City; People’s Republic of China; Let’s do it World (LDIW), Estonia, president and Head of Global Network, Heidi Solba and Ciudad Emergente (CEM), Chile, Co-founder and Executive Director, Javier Vergara Petrescu.

There was also the Cameroon Clean City Prize, presided by the Director of Fonds Special d’ Équipements et d’intervention Intercommunale (FEICOM), president of the International Jury, Philippe Camille Akwa. The Douala II council won the second position for the second consecutive time, while the Ebolowa two council occupied the first position with a cheque award of Fcfa100 million.

The Cameroon Urban Ideas competition, presided at the MINHDU boss saw the project, Valorisation of Humid Zones in Buea emerging winner, with a cheque award of Fcfa2 million.

It is worth noting that the organisation of this event was under the patronage of the Head of State, H.E Paul Biya. Cameroon has become the second African country to host the World Habitat Day after Kenya. The 2022 edition in Cameroon will be hosted by Bertoua, the headquarter of the East Region of the country.

It is also worth mentioning that the UN-Habitat Executive Director Maimunah Mohd Sharif has been decorated with the dignity of Grand Officer of the Order of Valor, by Cameroon’s Prime Minister, in his capacity as the personal representative of the Head of State.

Ingrid KENGNE

Reactions

“We are calling for urgent action for all of us to double our efforts to assure a Carbon-free world.”

Maimunah Mohd Sharif, Executive Director of UNO-Habitat

On this World Habitat Day, we are calling for urgent action for all of us to double our efforts to assure a Carbon-free world. We are already seeing the drastic impacts of global warming on the changing weather. These changes have led to increase flooding and severe heat rate, threatening lives, properties and ecosystems. We now have an increasing number of climate refugees and the easy spread of diseases that is faced by communities that are least responsible for the climate crisis. Meanwhile despite the best intentions of the Turkish agreement, global green house emissions continue to rise. If we are to avoid the worst case scenario, global house emissions will need to drop by half in 2030, which must reach net zero around 2050. If we reach zero by 2040, the change of holding global warming to 1.0°C is considered being higher. How to do this, fortunately, many of the solutions already lie within our reach. This is taking strategic actions in our four key sectors: electricity, building, mobility, and waste management. Cities are responsible for around 50% of global energy consumption. We need to decarbonise the energy growth. Cities can encourage the building of renewal sources of energy. This includes solar, biomass or natural waste and green power energies.

“We all have the power and responsibility to reflect on the state of our cities and towns”

Célestine Ketcha Courtes, Minister of Housing and Urban Development

This day emphasizes on the fundamental right of all to a living environment and calls on the international community in this regard to strengthen their collective responsibility for a better future for human habitat.  This day reminds the world that we all have the power and responsibility to reflect on the state of our cities and towns. We are not prevented from building a bright future for all. We are called upon to divert our attentions towards the importance of an urban environment suitable for every individual, and to promote the strategies and policies of sustainable urban development. A poor quality of life in a global context of unprecedented urbanization exerted by the covid-19 pandemic which has drastic impacts on the living conditions of the population is another major challenge we are facing.  High level experts urgently need to take concrete action in various components to save our planet.  Indeed, all the countries of the world are witness to the serious repercussions of climate change. Gas emissions continue to rise and increasingly double since 1990. Global warming is causing lasting changes in our climate system which can pose a threat or irreversible consequences if we do not act right away.  The resilience and adaptation capacity of the most vulnerable regions such as industrialized and developing countries must be strengthened with efforts to raise awareness and incorporate measures into national policies and strategies. It is still possible with the political will and a wide range of technological measures to limit the rise in average global temperature.  It involves collective action and urgent action.

Collected by Ingrid KENGNE