Filling the gaps: Building off FCFA’s success to prioritise existing research gaps within Africa

As the final curtains come down on the Future Climate For Africa (FCFA) programme, the impacts and outcomes of the programme will live on for many years. FCFA was one of the largest single investments in African climate science to date, and delivered considerable advances in understanding what drives the climate across the continent and what the future of climate change might look like. While the progress made within the programme life span was considerable, there are still several research gaps which limit our ability to understand Africa’s climate and how it may change.

Improving the use of Climate Change Information for Adaptation in Uganda – Hybrid Workshop on 2nd March 2022

Researchers from Uganda, Kenya and the UK shared their practical experiences of using new simulations with new datasets to examine climate futures and potential impacts in Africa, in a recent HyCRISTAL workshop hosted by the Water Resources Institute of Uganda.

New IPCC report emphasises the need to scale up adaptation in Africa and beyond

Climate change is already being felt across the world, with urgent adaptation action needed to avert the worst impacts. This according to the latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) working group II (WGII). In the 6th Assessment report (AR6), the IPCC authors highlight the interconnectivity between society, nature and climate change as vital to moving from risk to climate resilient development.

New papers from UMFULA feed into key themes from latest IPCC report

Three new papers highlight the diversity of approaches and themes covered in the FCFA project UMFULA and strong alignment with key themes promoted in the newly published IPCC Working Group II contribution to the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report (AR6) – ‘Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability’. The Summary for Policymakers emphasizes interdependencies between human societies and climate, biodiversity and ecosystems and the importance of non-climatic global development trends such as land and ecosystem degradation and unsustainable consumption of natural resources. To accelerate adaptation the report identifies, among other things, a need for removing barriers to accessing finance particularly for the most vulnerable and lists insurance alongside other public and private finance instruments as adaptation enablers.

Building a resilient future for tea production in Africa

During the Future Climate for Africa (FCFA) programme researchers looked to provide locally-relevant climate information and appropriate adaptation options for tea production in Africa. This included research in Rwanda carried out by the CCKE and Paul Watkiss Associates, as well as the Climate Information for Resilient Tea Production (CI4TEA) project in Kenya and Malawi carried out by the UMFULA and HyCRISTAL projects. A new report and two accompanying infographics produced by FCFA synthesize the key research from the programme. These products highlight the climate risks facing African tea producers, and how climate change may add additional stressors, while outlining potential adaptation options to ensure the sustainability of the sector in the future.

Deforestation increases risk of flash flooding in fast-growing West African coastal cities

The frequency of thunderstorms in some fast-growing African coastal cities has doubled over the past 30 years, with much of this increase linked to the impact of deforestation on the local climate, a study has found.

Initiatives unveiled at COP26 build on FCFA legacy

December 6, 2021

African countries bear the brunt of climate change impacts, yet they contribute little to the problem. As the globe continues to warm, these impacts will be more profoundly felt on the continent while communities, economies and policymakers struggle to adequately respond to the risks. In addition to this, the poor scientific understanding of Africa’s climate results in significant uncertainty over the future climate and inhibits adaptation. In order to safeguard the lives and livelihoods of the people of Africa, research and development programmes need to address knowledge gaps and support resilience building initiatives across Africa.

October 2021 Newsletter

Climate change predictions build resilience in African tea production

Researchers in the UK and Africa have teamed up to help tea producers better understand future climate risks so that they can reduce crop damage caused by climate change. Kenya and Malawi produce more than half the tea Britons consume and the crop makes up about 7% of Malawi’s GDP and 4% of Kenya’s. In recent years frosts followed by high daytime temperatures have reduced yields, as have longer and more intense dry spells.

UMFULA final workshop in Tanzania: launch of brief and handover of outputs

The end, but not really the end… what’s the best way to bring to a close over five years of interactions and collaborations? Well, it’s not ideal using Zoom, but we made the best of things on September 21st when we formally handed over the main outputs of UMFULA to the Rufiji Basin Water Board.