Addis Ababa — The Peace and Security Council (PSC) of the African Union (AU) has stressed the need to support the Commissions on Climate Change, established by the African Action Summit organized at the initiative of His Majesty King Mohammed VI on the sidelines of COP22, held in Marrakech in 2016.

The AU PSC "stresses the need for Member States to support the Climate Change Commissions, established by the African Action Summit for Continental Co-Emergence, organized at the initiative of His Majesty Mohammed VI, King of Morocco, on the margins of COP22, held in Marrakech in 2016, namely the Islands Climate Commission, the Congo Basin Commission, and the Sahel Climate Commission, and to ensure that these Commissions strengthen their collaboration with the AU Commission", said the Council in a statement issued Wednesday at the end of its 1114th meeting chaired on October 18 by Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccan Expatriates, Nasser Bourita, on the theme "Link between climate change, peace and security: Building resilience and adaptation for food security in African island states - In view of COP27".

The PSC continues to note with deep concern the unprecedented threats that climate change poses to human security in particular and to the peace, security, stability and development of the African continent as a whole, including by hindering the achievement of member states' national development goals, the aspirations contained in the AU Agenda 2063 and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (Agenda 2030).

The PSC, the statement added, stresses that it is imperative that member states, particularly island countries, further strengthen their national capacities for resilience, mitigation and adaptation to climate change, including by redoubling investments in disaster risk reduction and a credible climate early warning system.