By Tim Cocks

JOHANNESBURG – Africa’s fabled Eastern Glaciers will disappear within two decades. 118 Million people are facing immanent drought, flooding, or extreme heat. And climate change could also shave 3% from continental GDP by mid century, warned the U.N. agency on Tuesday.

A recent report by the World Meteorological Organisation, (WMO) on Africa’s Climate shows a grim picture of Africa’s capacity to adapt to weather events.

One data set shows that 2020 was Africa’s third-warmest year, with 0.86 degree Celsius more than the average temperature over the past three decades. Although it has warmed more slowly than the high-latitude temperate zone, its impact on Africa is still severe.

In a preface to the report, Petteri Taalas, WMO Secretary General, stated that the rapid retreating glaciers of eastern Africa is a sign of “… irreversible changes to the Earth system.”

The forecaster predicted that all three Africa’s tropical Ice Fields, Tanzania’s Kilimanjaro, Kenya’s Mount Kenya and Uganda’s Rwenzoris, would disappear by the 2040s, based on current rates.

In addition, “By 2030, it is estimated that up to 118 million extremely poor people (living on less than $1.90 per day) will be exposed to drought, floods and extreme heat … if adequate response measures are not put in place,” the African Union’s Agriculture Commissioner Josefa Sacko said.

Africa accounts for less that 4% of global greenhouse gas emissions. It has been long expected to suffer severe climate change. The country’s crops are already vulnerable to drought, its main cities lie along the coast and poverty is making it difficult for residents to adjust.

The report said that apart from the worsening drought conditions on Africa, extensive flooding was recorded in East Africa and West Africa for 2020. A historic locust infestation, which started a year before, also continued to cause havoc.

According to the report, sub-Saharan Africa will need to invest $30-50 billion (or 2-3% of its GDP) each year in adaptation to avoid worse outcomes.

In 2020, an estimated 1.2 Million people were forced to flee floods or storms. That’s nearly 2 1/2 times the amount of people who left their homes in conflict years.