EAC Climate Change Policy Framework
The Heads of State of the East African Community (EAC) directed the EAC Secretariat to develop a Climate Change Policy and strategies to address the adverse impacts of Climate Change in the region and harness any potential opportunities posed by Climate Change in the context of the principle of sustainable development.
The overall objective of the EAC Climate Change Policy is to guide Partner States and other stakeholders on the preparation and implementation of collective measures to address Climate Change in the region, while assuring sustainable social and economic development. The Policy prescribes statements and actions to guide Climate Change adaptation and mitigation to reduce the vulnerability of the region and enhance adaptive capacity and build socioeconomic resilience of vulnerable populations and ecosystems. Adaptation to Climate Change is of priority to the EAC region in view of the high vulnerability of the region to the impacts of Climate Change, with the emerging associated challenges, especially food security.
The EAC Climate Change Master Plan provides a long-term vision and a basis for the EAC Partner States to operationalise a comprehensive framework for adapting to and mitigating Climate Change in line with the EAC Protocol on Environment and Natural Resources Management and with international climate change agreements.
The Master Plan’s vision is to ensure that: “The People, the Economies and the Ecosystems of the EAC Partner States are climate resilient and adapt accordingly to Climate Change”. The EAC Climate Change Strategy guides the implementation of the EAC Climate Change Policy.