Wednesday, July 8, 2009

Millions of Ugandans face climate related hunger as seasons change

Francis Mugerwa and Eve Mashoo in AllAfrica.com, via the Monitor (Uganda): A new Oxfam report warns that multiple climate changes could reverse 50 years of work to end poverty. "Shifting seasons are destroying harvests and causing widespread hunger - but this is just one of the multiple climate change impacts taking their toll on the world's poorest people," the report launched by Oxfam in Kampala, states.

The report; 'Suffering the Science - Climate Change, People and Poverty', is being published ahead of the G8 Summit in Italy, where climate change and food security are high on the agenda. It combines the latest scientific observations on climate change and evidence from the communities Oxfam works with in almost 100 countries around the world, to reveal how the burden of climate change is already hitting poor people hard.

The report warns that without immediate action 50 years of development gains in poor countries will be permanently lost. "Climate-related hunger could be the defining human tragedy of this century" the report states in part.

According to the report, research based on interviews with farmers in 15 countries across the world, including Uganda and other African nations, reveals how once distinct seasons are shifting and rains are disappearing. Farmers, no longer able to rely on generations of farming experience, are facing failed harvest after failed harvest….

Banana carrier near Fort Portal, Uganda, shot by Amnon_s, Wikimedia Commons, under Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 2.0 License

No comments: