Download ADVERSE IMPACTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE AND DEVELOPMENT

ADVERSE IMPACTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE AND DEVELOPMENT
CHALLENGES: INTEGRATING ADAPTATION IN POLICY AND
DEVELOPMENT IN MOZAMBIQUE
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Capacity strengthening of civil society in the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) for
Adaptation to Climate Change (CLACC) is a multi-country project being implemented
by the Regional and International Networking Group (RING) and managed by the
International Institute of Environment and Development (IIED). A number of
international development partners are assisting with financial support.
The four regional centres are ZERO Regional Environment Organisation in Zimbabwe,
African Centre for Technology Studies (ACTS) in Kenya, Environment et
Developpement du Tiers Monde (ENDA) in Senegal and Bangladesh Centre for
Advanced Studies (BCAS) in Bangladesh.
The CLACC project supports LDCs in their efforts to adapt to the impacts of climate
change. This includes long-term capacity strengthening within the civil society bearing
in mind that the LDCs are most vulnerable to extreme weather events and are not in a
position to cope with the impact of climate change.
The main objectives of the CLACC project are to:
 Strengthen the capacity of civil society in LDCs to adapt to climate change and foster
adaptive capacity among the most vulnerable groups.
 Establish an information and knowledge system to help countries deal with adverse
impacts of change.
 Integrate adaptation to climate change into the work of key non-governmental
institutions and mainstream the NAPA process with these institutions.
Four fellows from the regional RING partners, hosted for eight weeks by the four
Northern partners of RING, reviewed the adverse impacts of climate change and existing
development challenges of twelve countries, among them Malawi, Mozambique and
Zambia. The review included:
 The present level of activities and policy domain addressing climate change including
variability of climate and extreme weather events.
 Identification of gaps and the necessary measures required in integrating adaptation
policy in all development activities for addressing climate-related stimuli and stress to
reduce vulnerability.
It should be noted that the report has been prepared using available country level studies,
policy documents and development plans.
The documents worth mentioning are:
a)
Initial National Communications to UNFCCC.
b)
Climate Change Vulnerability Studies.
c)
d)
e)
Report on the Implementation of the Convention on Desertification.
Report on the Implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity.
Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers.
2.
COUNTRY BACKGROUND
2.1
Geographical Location
Mozambique is located in south-eastern Africa between the latitude 10° 27' south
and 26°52' south longitude 30°12' and 40°51' east. The country is bordered in the
north by Tanzania, west by Zambia and Zimbabwe, north-west by Malawi, southwest by South Africa, south by Swaziland and east by the Indian Ocean. It has a
land area of 784 090km2, coastal line length of 2 515km and 17 500km2 being
under water.
The terrain is mostly coastal lowland, uplands in the centre and high plateaus in
the north-west. The highest point is Monte Binga (2 436m), which is situated
near the Zimbabwean border. It has a vast network of rivers and tributaries - 25 many of them emptying into the Indian Ocean. The most important one is easily
the Zambezi which flows across the country through the most fertile part of the
country (see map of Mozambique below).
FIGURE 1: MOZAMBIQUE - GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATION
2.2
Climate
The climate is tropical in the centre and north of the country and sub-tropical in
the south. There are alternating dry and west seasons with the latter extending
from October to April when it is very hot with temperatures ranging from 17°-30°
Celsius. North of the Zambezi River the climate is under the influence of the
north-eastern monsoon in warm seasons while south of Zambezi River it is
influenced by the sub-tropical anti-cyclonic zone. The highest rainfallfigures
have been recorded north of Sofala (Saetre and Paula e Silva 1979).
The winds in the northern part of Mozambique are influenced by the monsoon
system with north-east winds during the southern summer.
The average annual precipitation is about 1 200mm. The coastal region is
characterised by a tropical savanna climate while the upland areas of the interior
are humid and temperate. Annual rainfall is as follows:
Southern region
808 - 990mm
Centre region
627 - 1 544mm
North region
870 - 1 156mm
2.3
Vegetation
Sixteen vegetation types can be recognised in Mozambique with one of them
being Miombo woodland. Extensive vegetation dominates the north and centre of
the country, the dominant tree being Brachystegia species often mixed with
Julbernadia Globiflora. Mopane woodlands are found in the Limpopo-Save area
and upper Zambezi while Acacia woodlands occur in the more arid areas of
southern and central Mozambique. There are also moist forest woodlands and
moist semi-deciduous forest, Montane vegetation, palm savanna and swamp
areas.
2.4
Resource Endowment
Mozambique is endowed with vast water resources; its main rivers start in the
neighbouring countries and are characterised by high flows during the wet season.
There are abundant fish resources in the rivers, lakes and Indian Ocean. Savanna
and secondary forest cover 70% of the country and 45% of the land has the
potential for agriculture. The country has three ports, namely Maputo, Beira and
Nacala. Its mineral wealth can be divided into three categories, as follows:
i)
energetic (coal, natural gas and petroleum)
ii)
metallic (gold, iron, copper)
iii)
non-metallic (marble and precious stones)
2.5
Socio-Economic Condition
2.5.1 Social Condition
The current population of Mozambique is about 18,8 million with an annual
growth rate of 1,22 (in 2004 estimate). In 1950 the urban population was 5,4%
increasing to approximately 33% in 1995. Approximately two-thirds of the
population live in the coastal zone for easy access to food and employment with a
density of 120 people per km2 compared to the overall population density of two
people per km2. For life expectancy at birth, infant literacy and mortality rate
please see Figure 2: Mozambique at a Glance below. Mozambique has a total
fertility rate of 4,78 with 1,1 million people (estimate 2001) living with
HIV/AIDS. Nearly 70% of the population lives below the poverty line. The
incidence of poverty in the rural areas is 71,3% compared to 62% in urban areas.
Wide disparities exist at provincial level ranging from 88% in Sofala to 48% in
Maputo City. Mozambique has 10 provinces.
FIGURE 2: MOZAMBIQUE AT A GLANCE
2.5.2 Economic Condition
Mozambique is among the eight poorest countries in the world. In 1990 its debt
was around US$1 billion, increasing to US$5 billion in 1996. At independence in
1975 Mozambique inherited a weak infrastructure from the Portuguese who had
imposed economic sanctions on Southern Rhodesia.
In 1987 the government of Mozambique initiated the Economic Structural
Adjustment Programme aimed at reducing state control of the economy coupled
with social and political stability from 1986-1989. GDP growth rate increased
from 0,9% to 5,3%. The country's economy has been robust with an average
growth rate of 9% between 1995 and 2001. However, Mozambique remains one
of the poorest countries in the world with human development index rank of 170
out of 174 countries (UNDP 2002).
From 1987-1990 the inflation fell from 170% to 40%. At the beginning of 1997
inflation was approximately 18% and was expected to drop below 10%.
The economy is natural resources based, highly dependent on the state of the
environment. Agriculture is the most important sector with 80% of the population
living off the land.
2.5.3 Environment Condition
The economy revolves around the exploitation of natural resources, i.e.
agricultural-based family farming, which is mostly dependent on the climate
conditions which are extremely vulnerable to global climate changes.
Mozambique is one of the Southern African countries most disposed to hydrometeorological hazards (Boundreau et al, 2002).
In the last two decades alone climate-related shocks have tended to increase in
frequency and severity, resulting in catastrophic damage to livelihood (ibid).
Data gathered in the last two decades suggest that more than 8 million people
were affected by natural phenomena (ibid), the most frequent being droughts,
floods and cyclones. They had a devastating impact on the most vulnerable 80%
of the population living in the rural areas.
The state of vulnerability of these people is aggravated by their extreme poverty,
itself compounded by their limited access to essential services by fragile
infrastructures and by low productivity levels.
The extreme vulnerability of rural livelihood was generated partly by the
Mozambican civil war that lasted 17 years after the country's independence in
1975. This war caused demographic upheavals, especially in the rural areas.
About 3-5 million people were internally displaced or became refugees in
neighbouring countries (Devereux and Palmero 1999). Other consequences
included the loss of lives of approximately one million (Pitcher 1996) and
landmines planted throughout the countryside made it almost impossible for rural
people to access their cropping lands.
The civil war destroyed significant parts of the physical and commercial
infrastructure in rural areas. Numerous roads, bridges, shops, schools and
healthcare institutions were destroyed (Devereus and Palmero 1999; Pitcher
1998) and caused damage estimated at US$15 billion (Pitcher 1996), equivalent
to 250 years worth of exports at 1992 levels.
The uncontrolled dispersion of communities resulted in the rural households
losing their social network, families were split up and individuals were taken
away from the context in which they could draw mutual support, an important
base for rural livelihoods.
Mechanisms such as local norms and values, traditional rules, taboos and
ceremonies that had influenced the sustainable use of natural resources and
environmental protection were all abandoned. In addition, traditional authorities,
who were responsible for the dissemination of values and knowledge of farming
techniques, livestock production and disaster prevention and preparedness were
lost completely or replaced by others acquired from abroad or from other areas
within the country. This was not always suitable for local physical environment
(Watson et al 1999). As an indirect consequence the vulnerability of rural
livelihoods increased, placing these communities at greater risk to natural hazards.