COP27 Climate Change Conference: Urgent action needed for Africa and the world

Authors

  • Lukoye Atwoli East African Medical Journal
  • Gregory E. Erhabor West African Journal of Medicine
  • Aiah A. Gbakima Sierra Leone Journal of Biomedical Research
  • Abraham Haileamlak Ethiopian Journal of Health Sciences
  • Jean-Marie Kayembe Ntumba Annales Africaines de Medecine
  • James Kigera Annals of African Surgery
  • Laurie Laybourn-Langton Chatham House https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6605-0794
  • Robert Mash African Journal of Primary Health Care and Family Medicine
  • Joy Muhia London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8788-6956
  • Fhumulani Mavis Mulaudzi Curationis https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5144-0266
  • David Ofori-Adjei Ghana Medical Journal
  • Fricay Okonofua African Journal of Reproductive Health
  • Arash Rashidian Eastern Mediterranean Health Journal
  • Maha El Adawy Eastern Mediterranean Health Journal
  • Siaka Sidibe Mali médical
  • Abdelmadjid Snouber Journal de la Faculté de Médecine d’Oran
  • James Tumwine African Health Sciences
  • Mohammad Sahar Yassien Evidence-Based Nursing Research
  • Paul Yonga East African Medical Journal https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1991-9992
  • Lilia Zakhama Tunisie Medicale https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6026-8592
  • Chris Zielinski University of Winchester

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.17305/bjbms.2022.8137

Keywords:

COP27 Climate Change Conference, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Paris Agreement, Conference of the Parties (COP), Climate Crisis, Health and Climate Change

Abstract

The 2022 report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) paints a dark picture of the future of life on earth, characterised by ecosystem collapse, species extinction, and climate hazards such as heatwaves and floods (1). These are all linked to physical and mental health problems, with direct and indirect consequences of increased morbidity and mortality. To avoid these catastrophic health effects across all regions of the globe, there is broad agreement—as 231 health journals argued together in 2021—that the rise in global temperature must be limited to less than 1.5oC compared with pre-industrial levels. 

While the Paris Agreement of 2015 outlines a global action framework that incorporates providing climate finance to developing countries, this support has yet to materialise (2). COP27 is the fifth Conference of the Parties (COP) to be organised in Africa since its inception in 1995. Ahead of this meeting, we—as health journal editors from across the continent—call for urgent action to ensure it is the COP that finally delivers climate justice for Africa and vulnerable countries. This is essential not just for the health of those countries, but for the health of the whole world.

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COP27 Climate Change Conference: Urgent action needed for Africa and the world

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Published

01-05-2023

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Editorial

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How to Cite

1.
COP27 Climate Change Conference: Urgent action needed for Africa and the world. Biomol Biomed [Internet]. 2023 May 1 [cited 2024 Mar. 29];23(3):352-3. Available from: https://bjbms.org/ojs/index.php/bjbms/article/view/8137