BY MOSES MATENGA
PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa yesterday warned of severe job losses and possible deaths if the country does not immediately act to deal with effects of climate change.
Mnangagwa made the call on his official Twitter handle ahead of next month’s United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) to be hosted by the United Kingdom in Glasgow, Scotland.
He said Zimbabwe could not afford to fail to immediately deal with the issue of climate change as failure to do so would be very costly for the country.
“If climate change continues at its current rate, thousands of Zimbabweans will lose their jobs, homes or even their lives. Ahead of COP26, Zimbabwe has now committed to reducing emissions by 40% before 2030. The time for words is over — we must act now,” Mnangagwa tweeted.
If #ClimateChange continues at its current rate, thousands of Zimbabweans will lose their jobs, homes, or even their lives.
Ahead of @COP26, Zimbabwe has now committed to reducing emissions by 40% before 2030. The time for words is over – we must act now.#ClimateEmergency pic.twitter.com/EzA4nOEedO
— President of Zimbabwe (@edmnangagwa) September 27, 2021
Zimbabwe has over 90% unemployment rate with millions now relying on informal trade to eke out a living.
Recently, Mnangagwa met the United Kingdom ambassador Melanie Robinson where she stated that Zimbabwe was one of the countries that are deemed vulnerable to the effects of climate change.
The Zimbabwean government has been hard hit by an economic crisis that senior officials have blamed on drought, sanctions and floods, among other reasons.
But critics have also accused the Mnangagwa administration of corruption, saying it has affected the country’s economic turnaround strategies.
Zimbabwe was hit by successive droughts, Cyclone Idai and other tragedies in the last few years and remains vulnerable to the effects of climate change.
Follow Moses on Twitter @mmatenga
