ECOWAS climate centre uses COP29 to show its regional impact

The West African Science Service Centre on Climate Change and Adapted Land Use, WASCAL, a regional body that offers capacity-building and research-focused services in the fight against climate change, has showcased its work – and the impact it has on enhancing climate resilience in West Africa – at COP29, the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

WASCAL made presentations at two side events at COP29, on 16 and 17 November. In a video exchange, Dr Kwame Oppong Hackman, a senior scientist at WASCAL, spoke about the launch of the West African research report on Nationally Determined Contributions, or NDCs, of West African governments. NDCs are the commitments made by countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to climate change.

“West African scientists are contributing to driving climate solutions at COP29 in terms of providing information, helping with drafting elements of the first global stocktake (assessing how nations are progressing towards the goals of the Paris Agreement), taking part in technical dialogues to ensure that the voices of West African scientists are heard and brought to the fore as far as this important global agenda is concerned under the Paris Agreement,” Hackman said.

He said the research was carried out by young African scientists who undertook a review of the NDCs of the member countries of the Economic Community of West African States, or ECOWAS.

“The young scientists compared their NDCs with the results of the first global stocktake to see where the gaps are and where the different governments need to improve on their ambitions as they seek to ameliorate their NDCs,” Hackman explained.

According to WASCAL officials, the research projects were developed using a bottom-up approach, with extensive engagement at the community level.

What has been its scientific contribution?

Professor Kehinde Ogunjobi, the deputy director and research director of WASCAL, told a local news outlet: “We identified pressing climate issues such as unpredictable rainfall patterns, which impact agricultural practices. From there, we went into the labs to run simulations and produce actionable results. These outcomes are now being shared with end-users to drive national development plans, including NDCs.”

ECOWAS is the West African economic grouping of 15 member states – Benin, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde or Cape Verde, Côte d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo.

In the second side event, WASCAL presented another report on the institution’s ambitious action plan, dubbed the WASCAL Research Action Plan (WRAP 2.0).

WRAP 2.0 specifically seeks to formulate and carry out demand-driven research for development-oriented outcomes as prioritised by WASCAL member states, and to establish WASCAL as a front-line West African climate service centre. It also seeks to generate sound, evidence-based knowledge and information, and devise tools, including software, to support decision-making as well as provide policy information and support for developing climate and environmental risk management, building resilient socio-ecological landscapes, and attaining sustainable agricultural production and food security, the report says.

Capacity-building

In another pre-COP29 report, WASCAL emphasised the importance of research and capacity-building to address Africa’s climate resilience.

According to the deputy director of WASCAL, Professor Kehinde Ogunjobi, who doubles as the director of research at a WASCAL centre in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, research and capacity-building play a critical role in boosting Africa’s climate resilience, thus the need for countries in the sub-region to fund research and empower citizens to better address climate challenges.

“Our countries must continue to fund research and build capacity. For example, WASCAL has a capacity-building institution in The Gambia where we embark on climate change education. You need to build the capacity of people to understand this impact before they go to the end-users and educate them. Also, citizens must take ownership of the environment. We cannot continue to pollute, degrade forests or mismanage water resources,” he was quoted as saying in a local news report.

The about €3.5 million (about US$3.7 million) WRAP 2.0 action plan’s projects, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research, focused on translating scientific research into practical services that benefit communities and mitigate the effects of extreme climate events such as floods, droughts and heatwaves, the report revealed.

WASCAL says its emphasis on capacity-building at university level is the key in driving solution-oriented research.

Ogunjobi highlighted the capacity-building aspect of WRAP 2.0, which has facilitated the training of numerous PhD and masters students.

In fact, over the past 13 years, WASCAL has provided full scholarships to over 500 young West African scientists at the masters and doctoral levels, conducted cutting-edge research on climate change and land use and delivered unique climate services to policymakers, stakeholders and local communities, according to another report.

WASCAL’s work is also deeply aligned with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 13, which focuses on climate action, the report on its Facebook page says.

Climate education

“Beyond the science, it is vital to equip people with skills to understand climate impacts. WASCAL operates a climate education centre in The Gambia, where future leaders are trained to engage communities effectively,” Ogunjobi said.

Climate experts in Cameroon say gaining new knowledge to establish reliable databases, weather monitoring and technological innovation are key skills to be passed on to the next generation of new researchers in Africa.

“Specialised skills, especially in climate data collection, are paramount to ensuring a successful climate resilience in Africa,” Patrick Forghab Mbomba, the deputy director general of the National Observatory on Climate Change, or NOCC, Cameroon, told University World News.

West African scientists say their participation in COP29 is to improve their knowledge and create partnerships to help them to better contribute to the fight against climate change.

“WASCAL’s participation in COP29 is to further strengthen partnerships with international organisations and stakeholders, offer its expertise to cutting-edge climate research and innovation, create more opportunities for collaboration and knowledge-sharing, and increase capacity-building and training opportunities for West African scientists,” Professor Emmanuel Wendsongre Ramde, executive director of WASCAL, has said in a pre-COP29 statement.