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[IPS] Nairobi -- Despite mixed reactions to the outcomes of COP29, Africa has the opportunity to take the lead in harnessing nature to tackle the effects of climate change and secure a resilient future.

[African Arguments] Adaptation finance for Africa is falling dangerously short, both in quantity and quality. COP29 did little to help.

[The Herald] Zimbabwe is currently in the grip of an unprecedented heat wave, a stark reminder of the rapidly escalating climate crisis. This extreme weather has pushed temperatures to record-breaking levels, with the Meteorological Services Department (MSD) recording daily averages ranging from 36 to 44 Degrees Celsius.

[IPS] Bulawayo, Zimbabwe -- "Cooling" La Niña conditions may develop in the next three months but are expected to be relatively weak and short-lived, according to the latest update from the World Meteorological Organization. However, the WMO warns that while La Niña tends to have a short-lived cooling effect, it will not reverse long-term human-induced global warming and 2024 remains on track to be the hottest year on record.

[New Zimbabwe] The Government is aiming to boost cereal production to 3,3 million metric tonnes (MT) during the 2024/2025 Summer Season Plan to ensure food security in the country.

[ENA] Addis Ababa -- In a moment of gratitude and celebration, the Ministry of Planning and Development, led by Fitsum Assefa, hosted an inspiring recognition ceremony to honor the partners who empowered Ethiopia's transformative engagement at COP29.

[IPS] Mafaure, Zimbabwe -- When Susan Chinyengetere started to focus on farming in her home village in south-eastern Zimbabwe, she wondered if she could earn a living and raise her children.

[WFP] Nairobi -- The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has welcomed a contribution of US$22 million from the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) to strengthen climate resilience and food security for smallholder farmers, livestock holders and marginalised groups, including women and youth in Kenya, Somalia and South Sudan. Climate prediction centres forecast La Niña conditions in the eastern Horn of Africa, potentially reducing October-December rainfall in parts of Kenya and Somalia. This could

[ACSS] Extensive flooding in more than two dozen African countries due to higher-than-average rainfall has resulted in thousands of fatalities, millions of people displaced, and devastated infrastructure.

[The Conversation Africa] Baobab trees grow in arid and semi-arid parts of Africa, and have deep cultural and ecological significance. Some of these trees are thousands of years old. Global demand for baobab products has surged in recent years, driven by the fruit's nutritional and health benefits.

[Crisis Group] Few countries are more exposed to the ill effects of climate change than Somalia. Insecurity compounds the problem, with the Al-Shabaab insurgency exploiting drought conditions as a means of social control. Mogadishu needs help in dealing with the nexus of armed conflict and weather shocks.

[IPS] If lives and livelihoods are to be protected, if we want to avoid utter catastrophe, there simply is no time to lose. As has often been said, we are the first generation to feel the impact of climate change, and undoubtedly, we are the last generation that can do something about it.--Mansoor Usman Awan, Attorney General of Pakistan

[The Conversation Africa] African countries collectively have emitted very little of the greenhouse gases that have caused climate change, but are badly affected by climate-induced floods, droughts and heatwaves. To withstand some of the most devastating extreme weather events, African countries need to adapt fast. Setting up advanced climate information services that predict climate disasters ahead of time is critical. Environmental sciences lecturer Fredrick Kayusi was part of a group of researchers who investigated where

[UN News] Brazil's first-ever Minister of Indigenous Peoples and an initiative promoting sustainable agriculture in Egypt are among the six recipients of the 2024 Champions of the Earth award, announced by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) in Nairobi, Kenya, on Tuesday.

[Shabelle] Dhusamareb, Somalia -- In a significant address at the Humanitarian Summit in Dhusamareb, Galmudug, SoDMA (Somalia Disaster Management Agency) Commissioner Mahamuud Moallim laid out a strategic plan to combat the forthcoming humanitarian crisis linked to the La Nina weather phenomenon expected in 2025.

[TI] Throughout the world, groups of young people are coming together to, in one voice, challenge corruption and fight for climate action. Transparency International is partnering with youth groups from Cambodia to the Maldives to help raise the alarm and confront the many forms of corruption in climate action, from undue influence and bribery, to embezzlement.

[The Conversation Africa] The United Nations' 29th annual climate change conference of the parties, COP29, ended with countries from the global north committing US$300 billion per year in climate finance to developing countries. This money is meant to pay for developing countries to carry out climate change adaptation and mitigation and move away from fossil fuels. But the amount falls far short of the US$1.3 trillion per year needed. Kudakwashe Manjonjo of the Southern Centre for Inequality Studies at the University of the

[The Conversation Africa] In South Africa, the new 2024 Climate Change Act requires local governments to plan responses to global warming. These local authorities should find ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions where possible, such as from their bus services, and reduce their use of electricity that is produced by burning coal. They also need to green buildings and urban areas. These are all examples of climate change mitigation.

[Leadership] Deputy director of the French Institute, Lucille Haddad, has called for more sustainable initiatives that impact the environment and reduce the effect of global warming.

[The Conversation Africa] By now it's well established that meat and dairy are at least partly to blame for the climate crisis. And without coming off our addiction to animal products, we won't be able to avoid dangerous levels of global heating.