The first interactive workshop for journalists on media coverage of climate risk and natural disaster risk financing was held on 30 March 2019 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Organized by the Pan-African Risk Management Mutual (ARC), the Department of Rural Economy and Agriculture of the African Union and the Directorate of Information and Communication of the AU, the meeting aims to Increased awareness and understanding of the CRA’s program structure and the positioning of this program in relation to natural disaster risk financing systems in Africa.
“Climate change poses a significant risk for African countries, with the continent being the most vulnerable to droughts, floods and tropical cyclones. These climate change-related disasters undermine the growth of many countries and threaten both hard-won development gains and vulnerable populations, “said Mutual General Manager Mohamed Beavogui.
The workshop comes in a context marked by cyclone Idai that reached Mozambique, Malawi and Zimbabwe. It is therefore normal for a minute of silence to be observed before speaking. In fact, a survivor journalist – he calls himself Survivor – took the opportunity to describe a sequence of events. “The winds were strong, the buildings collapsed and fell over several hundred kilometers. Some tried to climb on roofs, but were blown away by the wind, “recalls Radio Mozambique journalist Charles Mangwiro.
Note that these meetings are held as a prelude to the seventh edition of the Conference of the Parties to the ARC (CoP7) to be held at the African Union Commission from Sunday, March 31 to Monday, April 1.
As a reminder, it was in 2002 that the African Union created the Pan African Risk Management Mutual (ARC) to help member states build their capacity to plan, prepare and respond more effectively to extreme climate events and climate change. natural disasters, thereby preserving the food security of vulnerable populations. To date, 33 countries have signed the CRA Treaty, which since 2014 has claimed cumulative insurance coverage of approximately $ 500 million.
