On October 20, 2020, the UN, together with Denmark, Germany and the European Union hosted a ministerial conference on the sharply deteriorating humanitarian situation in the Central Sahel, which covers Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger. On this occasion, I worked with the UN OCHA to raise awareness of climate change and its impacts on the Sahel and its people.
My people are already living on the edge and are facing some of the most stressing problems of this century: diseases like malaria, hunger, and insecurity.
The impacts of climate change in the Sahel have already been observed.
Recently many regions experienced floods leaving thousands of people who were already poor without homes. The extreme rainfalls resulting from our high greenhouses gases emissions have washed out the little they have.
The dry seasons are even becoming drier; water is becoming a luxury.