African Cities agree to have Clean Air for healthy nations

 

Panelists on the session on Clean Air during the ongoing ninth edition of the Africities Summit 2022 being held in Kisumu City-Story and Photo By Dickson Odhiambo.

May 20, 2022

 African Cities agree to have Clean Air for healthy nations

A NUMBER of Mayors and Governors within the various cities in Africa Continent have agreed on the need to have clean air within those cities and their surroundings.

The Mayors and Governors of ten African Cities that include Abidjan, Accra, Addis Ababa, Dakar, Ekurhuleni, Freetown, Johannesburg, Lagos, Nairobi and Tshwane have committed in ensuring that they improve air quality and public health by signing C40 Clean air Cities declaration.

During the ongoing ninth edition of the Africities Summit 2022 being held in Kisumu City, Kenya, the ten Cities agreed to join a global cohort of 38 cities including Durban on the issue of Clean Air.

By signing the C40 Clean Air Cities Declaration, the mayors recognize that breathing clean air is a human right and commit to work toward safer air quality to meet World Health Organization {WHO} Air Quality Guidelines.

Mayor of Johannesburg Dr. Mpho Phalatse says the issue of African Cities having clean air is an idea that must be fully encouraged.

She says the mayors of the C40 Cities should be fully supported on the initiative as they implement the resolutions on clean air.

“We must take action and pollution must be controlled at the main source,” she say.

Dr. Tolullah Oni has underscored the need to have Climate, Health and Pollution considered together on the issue of realizing clean air in Cities and other urban centers in Africa.

She says air pollution is the second largest cause of diseases, adding that 16 percent of Global diseases from air pollution are from Africa.

Dr Oni says Africa has various opportunities on the issue of clean air that includes rapid urbanization and young population for transformative action to design health and sustainability in cities within Africa.

She adds that another opportunity is the African Union Agenda 2063 with goals that include health and well-being and inclusive sustainable Cities.

Dr. Oni further says the call for actions is on three area namely enfranchising the citizens, Connecting Air quality and Health data and measuring the level and distribution of air pollution in Africa.

Cities are taking bold action to tackle air pollution and clean the air being breathed.

Through the C40 Clean Air Cities Declaration, 48 cities have committed to establish baseline air pollution levels, set ambitious targets which meet or exceed national commitments and implement new substantive policies and programs to address the top causes of air pollution emissions.

Through the declaration, mayors commit to use their power and influence to reduce air pollution and work towards meeting the World Health Organization’s Air Quality Guidelines.

This means cities will continually reduce their local emissions, and advocate for reductions in regional emissions, resulting in continuous declines in air pollution levels that move toward the WHO guidelines.

Air pollution has become the second largest cause of death on the African continent, due in part to rapid urbanization and industrialization.

 Approximately 1.1 million deaths per year have been linked to air pollution across Africa, according to a Global Burden of Disease study.

Approximately 59 million people across the Ten African Cities stand to benefit from cleaner air and improved health through commitments that could prevent as many as 10,000 early deaths linked to air pollution exposure, as well as more than 300,000 hospitalizations, resulting in US$ 9.4 billion in annual savings from averted deaths and hospitalizations.

Air pollution and climate change are closely connected and should be considered together; both need swift, unprecedented and collaborative action to address the sources of pollution that are harmful to our health and warming our planet.

The C40 Clean Air Cities Declaration sets a framework for cities around the world to improve air quality.

Within two years, signatories to the declaration will establish baseline levels and set ambitious reduction targets for air pollutants that meet or exceed national commitments.

 These targets will put the cities on a path towards meeting World Health Organisation Air Quality Guidelines for particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide, ozone, and sulphur dioxide.

By signing this declaration, C40 cities continue to take bold climate action despite the many challenges faced in recent times, with the global pandemic, economic disruption, climate-related natural disasters and in many cases strained financial resources.

C40’s new African Cities for Clean Air Program will help cities to achieve these commitments through capacity building, regionally-focused peer-to-peer knowledge sharing, and collaboration centered on air quality best practices.

C40 is a network of nearly 96 cities around the world committed to fighting climate change.