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Tanzania: Environment Woes Worry Zanzibar Leader
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The Citizen (Dar es Salaam)
10 May 2008
Posted to the web 12 May 2008
Zephania Ubwani
Arusha
Africa is much hit by environmental degradation and natural disasters because of instability of its ecological system, Zanzibar President Amani Abeid Karume said yesterday.
According to him, large forest areas of the continent have been cleared and agricultural land used to grow corn for ethanol production rather than production of food.
The turn to food crop production for energy rather than for feeding people has led to food shortages in the world's poorest continent, he observed. No
statistics were given.
Mr Karume, in a speech read by his Chief Minister Nahodha Vuai cited the frequent floods, droughts earthquakes and volcanic eruptions which have hit
the continent in recent years.
These include the December 2004 tsunami aftershocks which hit the east coast of the continent from its epicentre in south east Asia, thousands of
kilometres away.
Recently communities living around Oldonyo Lengai mountain in Ngorongoro district, Arusha, were affected by consistent eruptions of the volcano mountain, leading to major disruption of the people's lives and their properties.The speech was delivered during the closing of a two-day scientific conference here to officially launch the International Year of the Planet Earth for Africa (IYEA).
President Jakaya Kikwete officiated at the launching on Thursday in an event which was graced by the presence of Mr Koichiro Matsuura, the director general of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation which is supporting the programme in the continent in collaboration with The Netherlands government.
Former president Benjamin Mkapa is the patron of IYPE in Africa.He was here during the official launch and warned that there would be a five toseven per cent potential increase in malaria distribution in Africancontinent in the next few decades as well as reduction in crop yields due to the effects of climate change.
In respect of water resources, several countries in Africa will exceed the limits of their economically usable land-based water resources before 2025.
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According to Prof Hudson Nkotagu, the national chairman of IYPE for Tanzania, African countries would implement two programmes during the three year period.
These are scientific research and outreach programmes. The latter would mainly concentrate on public awareness on how to save the
earth.
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