Jane Salihu
Experts have urged West African governments to move beyond climate commitments and strengthen practical regional action, warning that worsening climate pressures are increasingly threatening livelihoods, infrastructure, food security and stability across the ECOWAS region.
The call was made as the ECOWAS Parliament commenced its Second Extraordinary Session and Second Seminar in Accra, Ghana, with the theme: “Climate Change as a Driver of Environmental Degradation, Population Displacement and Rising Insecurity in the ECOWAS Region.”
Experts at the seminar said rising temperatures, erratic rainfall, drought, flooding, rising sea levels and land degradation were placing increasing pressure on communities and critical infrastructure, with vulnerable populations bearing much of the impact.
Opening the proceedings, the Speaker of the ECOWAS Parliament, Hadja Memounatou Ibrahima, welcomed parliamentarians and participants to Accra and described the gathering as an opportunity to deepen discussions on issues affecting the region.
The Speaker also recalled Ghana’s first President, Dr Kwame Nkrumah, whose birth coincides with the country’s Founder’s Day, and his vision of a free and united Africa. A minute of silence was observed in his honour.
Speaking on climate risks and their implications for regional stability, the Senior Programme Officer, Climate Change and Ozone Directorate of Ghana’s Environmental Protection Authority, Dr Derek Sarfo-Yiadom, said climate hazards were already affecting communities across West Africa.
“Climate hazards are with us,” he said, citing extreme heat, drought, unpredictable rainfall and rising sea levels among the growing threats.
Dr Sarfo-Yiadom said seasonal temperatures had increased between one and three degrees Celsius since 1970, contributing to more intense heatwaves and changing weather patterns.
He noted that farmers, low-income communities, coastal settlements and displaced populations were particularly vulnerable, while climate-related pressures were also affecting homes, irrigation systems, electricity, transport networks, ports, markets and public services.
According to him, climate change could deepen displacement and tensions in communities where livelihoods depend heavily on agriculture and natural resources.
He called for increased investment in adaptation, climate-risk mapping, flood-proof planning and early-warning systems that can effectively reach vulnerable communities.
Also speaking, the Principal Officer, Climate Change and Climate Services at the ECOWAS Commission, Mr Raoul Kouame, said the region needed to translate existing climate commitments into coordinated action.
“The challenge is no longer just to define climate commitments,” he said, stressing the need to harmonise regional policies and standards while helping member states implement their obligations under the Paris Agreement.
Kouame identified institutional fragmentation, differences in national capacities and limited access to climate finance as some of the obstacles to effective climate action.
He called for stronger links between national and regional institutions, as well as greater sharing of technical knowledge and experience among ECOWAS member states.
He said regional cooperation should extend to climate services, early-warning systems, forest and ecosystem protection, carbon markets and access to climate finance.
A climate, water and meteorology expert with the Permanent Inter-State Committee for Drought Control in the Sahel (CILSS), Dr Abdou Ali, similarly stressed that climate risks required cross-border solutions because their effects do not stop at national boundaries.
He called for greater sharing of climate information, data, technical expertise and climate services among member states, particularly in areas affected by drought, land degradation and food insecurity.
Dr Ali also advocated the integration of climate considerations into agriculture, forestry, energy, transport, industrialisation and waste-management policies.
The experts agreed that effective adaptation would require stronger institutions, sustainable financing and implementation mechanisms that reflect the needs and livelihoods of affected communities.
They warned that without coordinated regional action, climate pressures could continue to intensify existing vulnerabilities and create additional challenges for development and stability in West Africa.
Parliamentarians are currently deliberating on the expert presentations as the seminar continues in Accra.
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