Addis Ababa, May 23, 2023 (FBC) – Minister of State for Water Resources Management Division at the Ministry of Water and Energy, Abraha Adugna (PhD), who is participating in the 19th World Meteorological Organization Congress in Geneva, Switzerland, said that climate change is causing natural disasters such as droughts, floods, forest fires and landslides in several parts of the world.
Climate change has put complicated challenges to the social and economic development efforts of nations, he noted.
Abraha stated that the drought that has occurred in the Southern and Southeastern parts of Ethiopia and neighboring countries for the past five consecutive years has caused a great damage to people and property in the areas.
He mentioned the establishment of a strong early warning system among the critical measures that should be taken to mitigate the impacts of climate change, stressing need to put in place a strong hydro-meteorological monitoring and control infrastructure and the coordination of stakeholders in the sector.
Adugna further stressed a need to pay due attention to environmental protection in addition to establishing a proactive system to mitigate impacts of natural disasters inflicted by climate change. He further underscored the need to take Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Initiative as an exemplary mechanism to fight against climate change.