Congo Needs Billions to Adapt to Climate Change, World Bank Says - Bloomberg Law
Congo Needs Billions to Adapt to Climate Change, World Bank Says
The Democratic Republic of Congo will need to spend about $11 billion to mitigate the effects of climate change, according to the World Bank.
The impact of global warming could reduce Congo’s gross domestic product 13% by 2050 and threaten its key tropical forests if actions aren’t taken, the Washington-based lender said in a report released on Thursday. The financing should be used to build resilient infrastructure, combat flooding and mitigate the impact of heat on workers.
“Infrastructure damage and connectivity issues due to climate change are expected to worsen fragility, conflict, and violence” as competition over resources increases, it ...
Related Knowledge Center: Climate economics
Climate change is now a driver of the world’s economy. The impact is profound:
- Catastrophic weather events — hurricanes, floods, droughts, high temperatures — are more frequent and more extreme. The cost can be measured in both the initial damage caused and the longer-term impact on the economy.
- Vulnerable communities are increasing climate-related investments, hardening infrastructure and taking other protective measures.
- Investment in carbon capture and storage technologies is increasingly rapidly.
- Governments are making investments and crafting regulations to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
On top of all of this is the cost of uncertainty. As the Fourth National Climate Assessment, released in 2018 by the U.S. Global Change Research Program, says, “The assumption that current and future climate conditions will resemble the recent past is no longer valid.”