26/06/2008
How are indigenous people being affected by climate change mitigation efforts?
Authors:
Publisher: The United Nations Economic and Social Council, 2008
In this paper, the authors summarise the effects of climate change on indigenous peoples, review mitigation and adaptation measures, and analyse the impacts of these measures on indigenous peoples. This paper includes case studies of mitigation measures under the Kyoto Protocol and other voluntary measures that are affecting indigenous peoples adversely. It also highlights some good practice models and identifies opportunities for indigenous peoples.
In the area of mitigation research, the authors argue that the initiatives undertaken have not adequately considered the needs and contributions of indigenous peoples. They argue that in order for global climate change mitigation efforts to be successful, indigenous people must be centrally involved as meaningful partners in these efforts.
The paper highlights the negative impacts of specific mitigation measures for indigenous groups, including biofuels production, carbon sequestration schemes, joint forest management projects. Positive outcomes of other projects are also discussed.
The paper concludes that there are many strategies that can be used effectively to mitigate climate change and facilitate adaptation to climate change, which will also protect and conserve the territories of indigenous peoples. The recommendations provide practical steps for the United Nations, other programs, and multilateral bodies on climate change mitigation matters. These include:
- the business community and its regulators should incorporate the rights of indigenous peoples into their plans for economic development in their territories
- UN member states should assist indigenous peoples with their adaptations to the increasingly negative impacts of climate change, while at the same time continuing, in parallel, to work on mitigation measures.
- UN member states and agencies should designate the Arctic region as a special climate change focal point asit is an early indicator of climate change for the rest of the world, and because its coastal indigenous peoples are at this time particularly vulnerable
- adaptation funds should be provided immediately to indigenous peoples who are affected by climate change-related disasters.
- indigenous peoples should be given substantial support to nurture and develop their traditional knowledge, their environment-friendly technologies, their cultural diversity and the biodiversity in their territories.
- policy support, technical assistance and funds should be given to indigenous peoples who are undertaking their own mitigation measures
Yangon, 25 June 2008 - Preliminary findings based on 50% of the data from the Village Tract Assessment (VTA) component of Post-Nargis Joint Assessment (PONJA) indicate that more immediate, life-saving relief needs remain to be provided. These findings were revealed at the ASEAN Roundtable meeting in Yangon on 24 June. Humanitarian relief efforts should continue to cover unmet needs.
In compliment to what the Government, private sector, local communities and NGOs have provided, international community have reached 730,000 people through the distribution of 9,200 MT of food. Another 7,800 MT are in the pipeline. VTA findings show that 45% of households receive food through humanitarian assistance, while 56% obtain food from the markets. Considering that 42% of all food stocks were destroyed, continued food assistance is required.
60% of households admitted that access to clean water is inadequate, especially as they have shifted from use of ponds (now salinated) to rain water catchments system. The international community has provided and installed 50 water treatment units to supply 250,000 people with 3 liters of clean water per person/day.
Findings show that 22% of households suffer from psychological stress, pointing to the need for appropriate support strategies. Although there has been no major disease outbreak to date, the preliminary findings show that open defecation has more than doubled, which poses serious risks for disease propagation.
With 59% of houses being severely damaged, VTA enumerators expressed concern that those being rebuilt with bamboo using traditional design will only be adequate for a maximum of 2 years. Shelter designed in the spirit of ‘Build Back Better’ would be an important form of longer-term recovery activities.
Regarding livelihoods, preliminary findings reveal a large increase in unemployment because less people are currently active in the agriculture and fishery sectors. 60% of village leaders suggest that there are not enough seeds for the next planting season. In addition, 78% of households report on lack of access to credit, which may impede community self-help efforts.
Minimizing disrupting to the education of children has been considered a priority. The humanitarian community has repaired 425 primary schools to date, and provided 135 temporary learning spaces. Essential learning packages have also been distributed to some 94,000 children, while provision of School-in-a-Box and Recreation kits has benefited some 65,000 students.
The results of VTA will inform the revised Humanitarian Appeal, which is set for early July. The Flash Appeal requested some $200 million and is currently funded at 66%.
The presentation on VTA preliminary findings is available in Myanmar Humanitarian Information Centre website: http://myanmar.humanitarianinfo.org/Pages/home.aspx 23/06/2008
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| Fireman and members of a rescue group help an elderly woman out of the Jaro river near Iloilo city, central Philippines June 21, 2008. |
| Typhoon Fengshen moved past southern Luzon Island in the Philippines Sunday afternoon and is heading into the East Sea, according to an official forecast. |
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The typhoon, the third storm to hit the East Sea this year, is expected to cause rough seas and heavy winds from June 23-25, threatening vessels and sailors in the area, Bui Minh Tang, director of the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting, said Sunday.
During this period, the east and northeast waters of the East Sea will face winds measuring between 62 km/h and 126 km/h.
The storm, in conjunction with the south-west monsoon, will adversely affect the Truong Sa (Spratly) Archipelago and ocean areas stretching from Binh Thuan Province to Ca Mau Province with heavy winds.
Tang said the storm then is expected to change direction and move towards Taiwan Island before hitting the Pacific Ocean.
Border guard forces, in coordination with local authorities, have provided storm warnings to more than 11,700 fishing vessels in the East Sea.
Sunday, border guard forces also reported that a vessel carrying 13 sailors suffered a technical problem and was adrift in the area.
Another local vessel, which had received emergency signals from the distressed boat, towed it to an area near the Philippines’s Palavan Island.
Relevant agencies are seeking support from the Philippines to help the vessel.
229 lives lost in the Philippines
At least 229 people are confirmed dead and at least six missing after Fengshen ravaged the central and southern Philippines, Red Cross and civil defense officials said Sunday.
The toll does not include those dead or missing from a ferry that sank in the central Philippines with about 747 people aboard.
Four people have been confirmed dead and there are four survivors from that accident, while the rest are unaccounted for.
The central province of Iloilo has suffered the heaviest losses after being hit by the typhoon on Saturday, with 101 dead, Philippine Red Cross chairman Richard Gordon said.
Other fatalities were recorded in neighboring provinces of Romblon, Cotabato, Antique and Capiz, Gordon added.
The civil defense office recorded 26 fatalities in the southern island of Mindanao.
“This [toll] will definitely rise dramatically when we get the listings from the ship,” Gordon said, referring to the Princess of the Stars ferry that sank off Sibuyan Island amid rough seas on Saturday.
Floodwaters in Iloilo rose so swiftly that many residents were forced to take refuge on rooftops or in tall trees, said provincial administrator Manuel Mejorada.
The flooding in Iloilo eased Sunday, allowing vehicles to reach affected areas, Mejorada said.
More than 35,500 families had to be evacuated from their homes due to the flooding and risk of landslides, the civil defense office said.
Electricity was knocked out in Iloilo and surrounding areas and officials do not expect power to be restored for about a week.
Telephone lines and mobile phone towers were down in many areas.
Manila and surrounding areas were lashed by the typhoon in the early hours Sunday, with power knocked out in large parts of the city and many domestic and international flights cancelled.
There were no immediate reports of deaths or damages in the capital but the Education Department cancelled all classes in metro Manila and surrounding areas today.
Source: TN, AFP |
17/06/2008
JOHANNESBURG, 13 June 2008 (IRIN) - UK-based development agency Oxfam has called for clarity on funds promised by rich countries to help the world’s poor cope with the global food crisis and adapt to climate change. In a report released ahead of the G8 finance ministers’ meeting, which began on Friday, Oxfam said G8 leaders must ensure that all the money – including the US$6 billion pledged at the Rome food crisis summit last week – comes on top of existing aid commitments. G8 Leaders will meet next month. Lots of money has also been pledged to help poor communities cope with the effects of changing weather patterns, including a proposed set of funds called the Climate Investments Funds (CIF). But, the money is either being taken from existing aid budgets or being turned into loans, said the Oxfam report, 'Credibility Crunch: Food, poverty, and climate change: an agenda for rich-country leaders'. “It is very unclear whether the $6 billion announced at the food summit is new. Is it in the form of loans or grants and over what time frame the funds will be made available?” asked Frederic Mousseau, policy advisor at Oxfam GB. “Besides, the money is still short of the $14.5 billion that we have calculated is needed to respond to the immediate needs of people suffering from the crisis – this money does not include funds for agriculture.” The UN response plan to the food crisis, which includes investment in agriculture, will need at least $15 to $20 billion a year. Debt relief is “arguably the best thing the G8 has ever agreed to do for poor countries” noted the report, and called for more cancellations particularly for countries such as Bangladesh, which have been affected by the global food crisis. Bangladesh pays $754 million a year to rich countries, according to 'Únfinished Business', the latest report by the Jubilee Debt Campaign'. The lobby group says that $400 billion needs to be cancelled simply to enable poor countries to meet their basic needs. So far around $88bn has been cancelled. Violation of Polluter Pays Principle
Japan, the chair of the G8 has announced that it will promote the CIFs, which have come under fire from civil society. The CIFs, to be managed by the World Bank, comprise two funds – one to help provide clean technology and the other to build adaptive capacity in the poor countries. “The money under both these funds will be provided in the form of loans, which is a violation of the Polluter Pays Principle (PPP),” said Antonio Hill, Oxfam International’s senior policy advisor on climate change. PPP is widely acknowledged as a general principle of international environmental law and is one of the fundamental principles of the European community’s environment policy.
 It is crucial that rich countries now show political will and start putting up money for the UN Adaptation Fund | The World Bank in a statement on the CIFs pointed out that the money will be in the form of highly concessional loans. “But the point is that it is still a loan,” said Hill. The Oxfam report has also cautioned that while additional money is “of course welcome”, the housing of new funds at the World Bank could undermine ongoing climate change negotiations. “At [the climate change conference in] Bali in December 2007 the UN Adaptation Fund was agreed. This was expressly designed and established after several years of negotiations to address adaptation needs in developing countries under the UN Climate Convention, and represents a major step forward. It is crucial that rich countries now show political will and start putting up money for the UN Adaptation Fund”. “Money should also make its way into the existing Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF) as well,” said Hill. The LDCF is the other fund set up by the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change to help the world’s poorest countries adapt to global warming. Countries were required to draw up a national plan of action to adapt. “Almost all the countries will have drawn up their plans by next year and would need funds soon,” noted Hill. 11/06/2008
BANGKOK, 6 June 2008 (IRIN) - Myanmar authorities, international aid agencies and local social groups are racing to repair damaged schools to have children in the cyclone-devastated Ayeyarwady Delta back into the classroom by early next month.
The move is seen as an important part of the recovery process for children. "The issue around getting schools open again is partly education, but you also want children to be back into a routine – back into a sense of normalcy as quickly as possible to help them overcome everything that's happened to them in the last few weeks," said Guy Chase, deputy country director of Save the Children in Myanmar.
According to Myanmar education authorities, more than 4,000 primary, middle and high schools that previously served an estimated 1.1 million children were damaged or destroyed in the cyclone.
Nationally, most schools in Myanmar re-opened on 2 June, after their traditional hot-season break.
But the formal reopening of schools in the cyclone-stricken Ayeyarwady Delta and the outskirts of Yangon was postponed for a month, following extensive damage to school facilities, although local authorities in some of the delta's larger towns have tried to re-open already.
The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) and Save the Children are now working with local Buddhist and church groups to organise repairs to school buildings or create "safe learning spaces", to import educational supplies, and train teachers in dealing with traumatised students – to help get the education system functioning again.
Some Myanmar dissidents and aid groups have criticised the drive to get kids back into the classroom so quickly in the midst of an on-going emergency relief operation.
However, Michael Bociurkiw, a UNICEF spokesman, said the 2004 Asian tsunami and the Pakistan earthquake showed "there is no better way to help families and to help children than to get [children] into the classroom."
Besides giving children an outlet, a structure and an opportunity for healing, getting them back into school also "gives parents and caregivers time to start focusing on rebuilding their lives" without worrying about their children's whereabouts, Bociurkiw said.
Chase also said there was concern that if children did not return to school quickly, they might never return at all.
Risk of further dropouts
Even before Cyclone Nargis, Myanmar had high primary school dropout rates, with up to half of children leaving school before finishing five years of education, due to poverty and pressure to help their parents by working.
"The sooner the children get back into school the less chance there is of them dropping out of school," said Chase. "Dropouts are a big problem in the country anyway at the best of times. And in an emergency situation, we know from research, the longer a child is out of school, the less chance there is that they will ever go back to school."
Yet getting the young survivors of Nargis – which left more than 133,000 people dead or missing when it struck on 2 and 3 May – back to school will be a massive logistical task, given the severe destruction to the delta's education infrastructure.
"This was really a children's catastrophe in terms of the damage to infrastructure that kids access - we are talking about schools, health clinics and play areas," Bociurkiw said.
Education infrastructure devastated
Of the 4,000 schools affected, about 1,200 were demolished, another 800 were severely damaged, and 2,000 lost their roofs in the powerful wind.
Aid agencies are now importing 200,000 roof sheets. In areas where schools were more seriously damaged, they are erecting large tents or building simple shelters with local materials such as bamboo and palm fronts to create "safe learning spaces".
They will also bring in other education supplies and materials for teachers and students.
Meanwhile, it remains unclear precisely how many teachers survived the disaster or are able to return to work, and how many children will be left in any one school.
Kaz de Jong, a trauma specialist with Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), said that in one remote area, he encountered a teacher who tried to register students and told him that only 70 of the school's 200 pre-cyclone students had survived.
But agencies say they are already planning to train teachers - or community volunteers who may temporarily fill in for them – in how to deal with children still traumatised by their experiences, and losses.
Says Chase: "We are planning training for teachers around psycho-social issues and to prepare them for re-starting school in pretty traumatic circumstances and how to help the children through this process."
In Thua Thien Hue Province, the long term flooding period (15/10 – 15/12/ 2007) and the cold snap in the begginning of 2008 had heavy consequences on the population, on the economic infrastructure, and on the future of many families.
In order to recover the economic life to people affected by the long disaster period, on April 15th, 2008, the European Commission Humanitarian Aid Department (ECHO) agreed to fund a project “Livelihood recovery in Thua Thien Hue Province (Central Viet Nam) with technical, economical & social support to families affected by 2007 long flooding and 2008 cold snap”, to be implemented by DWF (Development Workshop France) in Viet Nam. The project will be operated in within 11 months (from 15/04/2008 – 15/03/2009) in 09 communes of 3 districts (including Huong Tra, Quang Dien, Phong Dien) in Thua Thien Hue Province for about 740 families.
The main objective of the project is to stabilise families seriously affected in 2007-2008 disasters, with activities less dependent of the extreme weather conditions, in a safer village / commune environment; the income generating support to families, including diversification of agricultural production or handicrafts, with group or collective works, will allow them to return to conditions at least better than before 2007-2008 disasters.
On Friday 30th May, 2008, the start-up meeting was held on People’s Committee of Quang Dien District, Thua Thien Hue Province. Participants of the meeting included representatives from relevant departments of Thua Thien Hue province, leaders of the 3 district partners, leaders of the 9 communes partners (including Huong Chu, Huong Phong, Quang Phu, Quang Vinh, Quang Tho, Quang An, Quang Thanh, Phong Chuong, Phong Binh), over 20 families represents for over 740 directly family beneficiaries of the 9 communes, and mass media agencies as Thua Thien Hue Newspaper, Hue Television.
The meeting was taken place in joyful atmosphere and happiness, undertaking a successful project, especially to improve the living conditions of family beneficiaries and stable family plan for the future.
DWF
Hué, 9 June 2008 10/06/2008
BANGKOK, 9 June 2008 (IRIN) - Survivors in Myanmar's cyclone-devastated Ayeyarwady Delta will likely need food assistance for as long as a year, the UN warns.
Many farmers will not be able to plant rice for this year's crucial monsoon paddy crop, due to the severe damage to their fields and a shortage of farming supplies after the category four storm swept across southern Myanmar on 2 and 3 May, leaving 134,000 people dead or missing and some 2.4 million destitute.
Paul Risley, a spokesman for the World Food Programme (WFP), says Cyclone Nargis, and its accompanying tidal surge, washed away or severely damaged the rice stocks of most of the delta's rural households, leaving many families with little to sustain them in the coming months.
And while Myanmar authorities and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) are working to ensure that at least some rice is planted so as not to lose the coming season completely, Risley said most farmers, and their labourers, are probably still at least six months away, if not longer, from replacing their lost food stocks.
"A certain percentage of households and farmers in the delta area will likely require some form of food assistance through their next harvest, which could be up to a year away," Risley told IRIN in Bangkok.
Devastated farmlands
According to the FAO, about 200,000 hectares, or 16 percent, of the delta's total 1.3 million hectares of agricultural land were severely damaged in the cyclone and would "not be available for planting this season".
Some of these fields have suffered severe salinity damage - due to the tidal surge that swept salt water up to 35km inland - and will require environmental remediation. Others remain submerged more than a month after the disaster struck.
Planting for Myanmar's crucial monsoon rice crop is normally under way at this time, and authorities are racing to help farmers whose lands do not require environmental remediation to plant rice in the coming weeks.
"We have to complete the sowing of seedlings by the end of July at the latest," said Hiroyuki Konuma, FAO's deputy regional representative in Bangkok. "Otherwise it will create tremendous damage to the productivity of rice . the income and livelihood of rural farmers, and it will eventually affect the national food security of Myanmar itself."
Yet Konuma said even farmers whose lands were not seriously damaged either by salinity or flooding could battle to plant this season, hampered by lack of inputs.
"There are many obstacles before farmers can actually start the cultivation," he said. "Many areas are still empty and farmers have not yet come back because of a lack of shelter or lack of food. If they are not assured of sufficient shelter or food, they cannot stay long on the land," he said.
Many farmers still lacked inputs such as seeds, tillers and draught animals, and it was not known how rapidly such materials could be distributed, he added.
All this, said WFP, suggested that many families, in addition to those whose lands were severely damaged, would simply not be able to plant their crops, and landless labourers would need extensive food support.
"Farmers who are able to plant now will not have food until that rice crop grows in six months," said Risley. "Farmers who don't plant at all this year will not have a crop until next year."
Imports likely
Given the likely reduction in the region's rice output, WFP is suggesting it may have to import some food, which could be a sensitive issue with a government that has prided itself on its self-sufficiency and tightly regulates all imports.
"Myanmar has generally been self-sufficient in food grains in recent years, but this cyclone was a devastating hit, especially on rice stocks, which means it will be more and more difficult for WFP to purchase locally," Risley said.
In the coming weeks, WFP, with its partners, will conduct detailed food security assessments. A team will be conducting household level surveys in villages to examine questions of food consumption, availability and prices.
From this and FAO data, the organisation will draw up a plan for medium- and long-term food aid to the region.
"The key issue for WFP will be whether we can continue to procure food locally or whether we will also begin to import rice to meet the needs of the WFP pipeline providing food to cyclone survivors," Risely said.
Source: United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs - Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN)
Date: 09 Jun 2008 04/06/2008
Viet Nam will be one of the countries most affected by climate change in the world, according to participants in the High Level Discussion on Climate Change, held on 25 May and facilitated by IUCN. A sea-level rise of only one meter could inundate over six percent of the total area of the country and displace over 10 million people.
“Climate Change and Sustainable Development in Viet Nam” workshop took place in Ha Noi with more than 100 National Assembly members and a number of donor agencies exchanging information on climate change and its implications for the country’s long term sustainable development.
Presentations on the impact of climate change projected a bleak future for Viet Nam and options for dealing with potential impacts were discussed. In particular, discussion focused on the "Viet Nam National Target Program on Climate Change and Sea Level Rise" which is currently being drafted. The National Target Program needs to be completed this July and submitted to the National Assembly for their consideration and approval.
There is no doubt that climate change impacts are already present and increasing in Viet Nam, causing negative effects on all sectors and regions in the country, and there is an urgent need to further improve awareness on this for provincial authorities and local communities.
Members of the National Assembly and other participants have then suggested that IUCN should continue to work with the National Assembly, MONRE, and other line ministries to consolidate climate change awareness raising efforts, as well as to work with the international community to develop an appropriate and comprehensive approach to address this developing threat.
The workshop has made a firm start for a long-term cooperation between IUCN, Viet Nam governmental organizations and international partners on climate change. A series of awareness raising workshops is currently under development.
The National Assembly of Viet Nam hosted this workshop in collaboration with IUCN, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE), and the Ministry of Planning and Investment, under the sponsorship of the Swedish International Development Agency (Sida).
To learn more on IUCN Climate Change Programme in Viet Nam, contact huy@iucn.org.vn
03/06/2008
OUAGADOUGOU, 28 May 2008 (IRIN) - Heavy rains that hit Ouagadougou on 25 May left 542 people homeless, over half of them children, Gabriel Semdé, the provincial director of the government ministry for social welfare and national solidarity, told IRIN.
Up to 93 families lost their homes in two of Ouagadougou’s districts. The families are currently sheltered in local schools and community centres.
Most of the homes were mud huts which are often easily destroyed in floods.
“Some victims lost everything in the rains,” Gabriel Semdé said. “And this is just the start of the rainy season.”
The National Committee for Emergency Aid and Rehabilitation (CONASUR) said it delivered 20 tents and basic food to some of the displaced families and that it was preparing to deliver more.
“We are giving [the homeless] basic provisions and we are stockpiling in case we face more floods in the future,” Amadé Belem, CONASUR’s permanent secretary told IRIN.
The UN Humanitarian Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) representative in Burkina Faso, Félix Sanfo, told IRIN that OCHA is “closely watching the situation” in partnership with the CONASUR.
Semdé and Belem said they were angry that the government had not made more progress in improving drainage in flood-prone neighbourhoods, given that floods occur each year.
“We must now work to prepare drainage in all parts of the city”, Semdé said.
Burkina Faso was one of the West African countries hardest-hit by floods in 2007, with 83 people killed, 140,000 displaced and 26,800 houses destroyed. All 13 of the country’s regions were affected.
Despite a UN appeal launched in October 2007 for US$6 million to help rebuild homes some families have reportedly still not receive assistance.
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