“With around 83% of its land area being arid and semi-arid, Kenya relies heavily on two rainy seasons to support agriculture and livestock. But climate change has made droughts and floods more frequent, endangering the lives of many communities.
The executive director and founder of the youth non-governmental organization (NGO) “Spring of Arid and Semi-Arid Lands” speaks about this. Here is Omar. Oku.Azsaid in a statement
He shared his experience of working with local Maasai communities in Kenya and spoke about the problems these communities face due to climate change and the role of NGOs in helping them.
“Climate change is a complex process that changes dramatically in nature and does not give people time to adapt,” said Mana Omar.
He noted that a song about climate justice was presented at the COP29 conference in the traditional Maasai language. This initiative aims to draw attention to the problems of local pastoral communities suffering from the consequences of climate change.
As a developing country, Kenya does not have enough resources to protect all its people from the effects of climate change. Therefore, many communities, especially those living in marginalized areas, rely heavily on assistance from NGOs and donors.
“Local organizations like ours intervene to help local communities and people living in marginalized areas adapt to climate change and mitigate its effects,” explained Mana Omar.
Despite Kenya’s ambitious plans and policies to combat climate change, the implementation of projects at the national level does not always reach local communities. This is where NGOs working directly with people on the ground come to the rescue.
Rufina Abdullayeva
