By Segun Ojumu
The West African regional parliament has called for coordinated action to tackle the growing threat of climate change across the region.It comes at the end of a three-day ECOWAS Parliament seminar in the Ghanaian capital, Accra, which focused on how environmental breakdown is driving displacement and fueling instability.
Speaking at the close of the summit, Speaker of the ECOWAS Parliament Hadja Mémounatou Ibrahima warned of the increasing frequency of extreme weather across West Africa. She pointed to worsening droughts, severe flooding, and rapidly eroding coastlines, noting that vulnerable communities continue to bear the heaviest burden.”The time has come for action,” Ms. Ibrahima told delegates, urging lawmakers to push for immediate policy changes in their home countries.
During the final sessions, representatives from Côte d’Ivoire, Cabo Verde, The Gambia, Togo, and Nigeria presented national reports detailing the local impact of the climate crisis.
Key proposals agreed at the summit include:The creation of a regional climate resilience fund.upgraded early-warning systems for extreme weather events, expanded investment in renewable energy and sustainable forestry and increased parliament oversight on national emission reduction targets. Delegates stressed that securing equitable access to international climate finance remains critical for the region. Parliamentary leaders assured attendees that the summit’s recommendations would be passed to regional governments to help deliver the bloc’s long-term development goals for 2050.
Add Comment