Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), working with the Wellcome Trust, has launched a climate and health science and policy consortium for West Africa as part of a wider effort to strengthen African-led research on the health effects of climate change.
The initiative, launched in Accra, also established a consortium for Southern Africa. The two groups are intended to support research and policymaking on the links between climate conditions and human health.
Alhaji Baba Seidu Issifu, Minister of State for Climate Change and Sustainability, said African countries could no longer treat climate change as a distant threat, citing rising temperatures, floods, droughts and air pollution as pressures linked to disease outbreaks, food insecurity and already strained health systems.
He called for closer work between governments, researchers and development partners so that policies protecting vulnerable communities can be based on relevant evidence. He described the consortiums as an opportunity to put African scientists at the centre of developing knowledge suited to the continent’s circumstances.
Mr Issifu also referred to recent flooding in Accra and elsewhere in Ghana, saying such events can disrupt health services, contaminate water sources and affect education and livelihoods. He cited World Health Organisation estimates that climate change could contribute to an additional 250,000 deaths globally each year between 2030 and 2050.
Professor David Asamoah, Pro Vice-Chancellor of KNUST, said Africa was highly vulnerable to climate change despite its relatively low contribution to global greenhouse-gas emissions. He said changing climatic conditions were influencing malaria risks, while floods could contribute to cholera outbreaks and drought could worsen food insecurity and malnutrition.
Modi Mwatsama, Head of Capacity and Field Development for Climate and Health at the Wellcome Trust, said climate and health research in sub-Saharan Africa remained limited despite growing risks. She said stronger research was needed to give policymakers tested options for interventions.
The launch comes as climate and health have become increasingly interconnected policy concerns, with the organisers positioning the consortiums as platforms for research, innovation and coordinated action across the two regions.
