By Kayode Ojelola
Climate change is increasingly recognized as an emerging crisis requiring radical and immediate action. While children are among the most vulnerable, they need not be considered passive or helpless victims. As climate change is projected to have significant impacts on the agricultural sector and on water access, as well as cause loss of livelihoods, access to adequate nutrition is set to worsen as impacts intensify, and the incidence of extreme events increases. Children are particularly vulnerable to climate-related food insecurity, with millions of children around the world struggling to get sufficient nutrition in their daily diet.
Africa has often been identified as one of the most vulnerable regions to climate variability and changes because of multiple stress and low resilience, poverty, a weak institution among others, and with the current tread, Africa continent is to be hit with stronger temperature increase than the global average, which as causes some part of the continent prone to driest in the last century which include the Sahel.
The current drought in the horn of Africa that triggered famine and spurred food crises in some countries is likely to become more in many places with extreme weather events.
Children in julma and napal suffer from malnutrition due to increasing level of rainfall, extended droughts and flooding have contributed to crop failures, since 2003, world vision on Nepal has been working with local communities to help increase food security and nutrition outcome for children.
Climate change threatens the nutrition and health of the world’s poor. Changes in weather patterns can lead to flooding and drought – both of which can decimate a region’s food supply. Scientists project that rising temperatures and shifting rains are likely to reduce crop productivity in many vulnerable regions. In developing countries, this will likely leave hundreds of millions without the ability to produce or purchase sufficient food. In regions where livelihoods depend upon rain-based agriculture and animal husbandry, droughts and floods and the crop failures that result, seriously undermine the survival and nutrition of children and mothers. Changes in climate will also affect land areas suitable for farming and crop yields.
In addition, climate-related ecosystem changes are making it harder to find some wild sources of food, as people’s knowledge of where and when to hunt, fish, and gather food plants becomes less reliable. Major variations of temperature, precipitation pattern, and humidity will have a strong effect on vector-borne disease and will contribute to malnutrition. The threat of climate change on feeding in Africa nations is to be looked into, the effect is showing and millions of children die every year due to malnutrition. There is an urgent and immediate need to apply resources to fight against malnutrition and help the children.
Children are the most active weapon of change in a society, if when feed, while children are among the most vulnerable, they need not be considered passive or helpless victims. Through education, projects, and activities, children can contribute to every aspect of climate change policymaking, mitigation, and adaptation.
Furthermore, today’s children are tomorrow’s business leaders, decision-makers and consumers. Children are therefore powerful agents of change. As children better understand the causes and impacts of climate change they will be better able to plan for, respond to climate change.
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