Africa: Climate Change Destroys the Lives of Millions

The United Nations Humanitarian Office (OCHA) reported that at least 3.6 million people had been affected by floods and landslides in East Africa since June.

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Ethiopia: Flood Affects 1 Million People, Thousands Displaced

According to another report released on Sunday by the United Nations, the continent is one of the hardest-hit by climate change as natural disaster threatens the lives of millions of people who already live in vulnerable conditions. According to this report,  2019 was among the three warmest years on record for Africa, and the trend is expected to continue.

The OCHA remarked that the situation regarding floods and landslide due to heavy rain is worse in Sudan, where flooding affected about 856.000 people since June 2020, including nearly 400.000 who have been displaced.

Moreover, floods have impacted almost 1.1 million people in Ethiopia. In particular, it is estimated that at least another 1.1 million people in East Africa were already displaced because of armed conflicts and violence before this year's floods.

As natural disasters caused by climate change are jeopardizing the crops and livestock of thousands of communities, it is expected that the 31.5 severely insecure people in East Africa will continue to increase.

The UN warns that climate change will impact the region's gross domestic product heavily, as is expected to decrease 2.25 percent to 12.12 percent. West, Central, and East Africa show a worse scenario compared to Southern and North Africa.