Addis Ababa Expands Green Spaces with New Riverside Project

Added: 2026-06-03

[00:00:10]From urban renewal in Addis Ababa diplomatic engagement in Seoul and more Africa continues to shape its future at home and abroad. We bring you the latest updates and stories shaping the continent and beyond. Let's begin in Addis Ababa. Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on Tuesday officially inaugurated the Entoto Children and Mother's Land project, a major urban renewal initiative aimed at restoring environment and enhancing public spaces in the capital. In a post shared on social media, the Prime Minister said the inauguration came a day after Ethiopia's seventh general election marking another milestone in the government's efforts to modernize Addis Ababa and improve the quality of life for residents. The project has transformed previously degraded riverside areas into a vibrant green corridors through extensive soil conservation measures, river purification efforts, and the development of fruit parks. The renewed landscape also features integrated pedestrian walkways and cycling paths designed to promote recreation, mobility, and environmental sustainability. Stretching across a 22.25 km riverside development corridor, the initiative is one of the city's most ambitious urban restoration projects.

[00:01:20]The project restores 438 hectares of degraded land including the rehabilitation of 36 hectares previously affected by eucalyptus debarking. It also features a new 9.5 hectare fruit park and 210 modern beehives to support urban agriculture and biodiversity.

[00:01:37]According to Prime Minister Abiy, the development serves as a tangible symbol of Ethiopia's progress and a practical demonstration of environmental restoration, urban renewal, and sustainable national development.

[00:01:49]Officials say the project is expected to improve ecological conditions, expand public access to green spaces, and enhance urban livability for residents and visitors alike. The development links ecological rehabilitation with urban design aiming to reduce flood risk, improve biodiversity, and increase access to green space in densely populated neighborhoods. The project is also connected to broader urban regeneration efforts around the Entoto Highlands and surrounding river systems, areas historically significant to the city's formation and expansion.

[00:02:28]The inauguration comes just days after Ethiopia's seventh general election, a vote that has attracted attention across Africa. From Nairobi to Cape Town, African media hails Ethiopia's historic electoral exercise as proof that democracy of continental scale is possible. When polling stations opening across Ethiopia at 6:00 a.m. on June 1st, 2026, something larger than a national election began. Millions of Ethiopians cast their ballots in the country's seventh general election, a vote widely seen as a significant milestone in Ethiopia's ongoing democratic journey with citizens electing members of regional state councils and a new federal parliament said to shape the country's political direction for the next 5 years. Millions exercised their democratic right across 50,000 plus polling stations in what was described as a peaceful election. This year's scale of the exercise drew admiration from across the continent.

[00:03:21]Ethiopia's seventh general election was described as one of the largest democratic exercises not only in Africa, but in the developing world with over 54 million registered voters, 42 political parties fielding 10,438 candidates alongside 80 independents. In a region so often defined by political turbulence, military transition, and constitutional crisis, Ethiopia was seen as quietly scripting a remarkably different narrative, one of institutional consistency and democratic endurance. For a nation of over 130 million people and home to more than 80 ethnic groups, reaching a seventh consecutive general election was itself a statement of democratic maturity that few peers on the continent could match.

[00:04:03]Africa's most prominent voice arrived in Addis Ababa to bear witness. Former Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta leading the African Union election observation mission underscored the significance of the election not only for Ethiopia, but for the wider African continent. As you know, Ethiopia is home to our continent's all organization, the African Union, and therefore the election here is important not just for Ethiopia, but for the entire continent, he underscored. The AU mission itself comprised 73 short-term observers drawn from 37 African countries, 61% of them women, including ambassadors, election management body officials, civil society representatives, human rights specialists, gender and media experts, and youth organization representatives deployed across every region of the country. IGAD added its own 26-member observation team, making the continent's investment in Ethiopia's democratic process unmistakable. Kenyatta's message went beyond observation. It became a philosophical statement about African democratic ownership. He declared that Ethiopia's success is Africa's success and argued that Africa need not import democratic models from elsewhere. Our situations are unique. We do not necessarily have to copy and paste models from other parts of the world. We can create and learn from ourselves and replicate best practices across the continent. He expressed a clear continental aspiration. Our desire is to see Ethiopia continue to grow from strength to strength, serving as a model for our continent. That framing Ethiopia not as a fragile democracy needing external validation, but as a source of best practices for others resonated powerfully across African editorial rooms that covered the election. What emerged from Ethiopia on June 1st, 2026 was a democratic exercise that spoke far beyond its own borders. Many observers considered the election one of the most important in Ethiopia's modern history, one that carries significance far beyond the ballot box, representing a broader test of the country's democratic transition and institutional reforms and political future.

[00:06:12]>> [music] [music] [music] >> Welcome back, viewers. You're still watching Pulse of Africa. Our story continues. Meanwhile, the Ethiopian government is praising the election as peaceful and historic democratic exercise. The Ethiopian government has declared the country's seventh general election a success, praising millions of citizens for their participation in what it described as a peaceful and historic democratic exercise. In a statement issued on Tuesday, the government communication service said Ethiopians had responded overwhelmingly to the call to participate in the election, helping to strengthen constitutional governance and the country's democratic institutions. Ethiopians have voted and Ethiopia has won, the statement declared, describing the election as another demonstration of the Ethiopian people's commitment to national causes and collective responsibility. According to official figures, more than 54 million citizens registered to vote in the nationwide election, which was held on June 1st. Polling stations opening early in the morning across the country with a large number of voters forming long queues throughout the day and until midnight to cast their ballots. The government noted that many voters waited for hours to participate, calling the election one of the most significant piece of civic engagement in Ethiopia's electoral history. The election is Ethiopia's seventh national vote and comes as the country continues efforts to strengthen democratic governance and institutional reforms. More than 10,000 candidates representing dozens of political parties and independent contenders competed for seats in federal and regional legislative bodies. The government communication service said the election reflected Ethiopia's determination to build what it called an Ethiopian democratic system through transparent election and respect for constitutional order. The statement also acknowledged challenges and opposition to the electoral process, but said the election was conducted successfully due to the commitment of citizens and institutions involved in its organization. The government expressed gratitude to voters, security forces, election officials, observers, media organization and all stakeholders who contributed to the peaceful conduct of the polls. Earlier in the day, domestic election observers from the coalition of Ethiopian civil society organization for elections reported that voting procedures were largely conducted in accordance with the country's electoral laws and regulation. The coalition employed more than 3,100 observers across Ethiopia to monitor the process.

[00:09:09]The National Election Board of Ethiopia is expected to continue the vote counting and verification process before announcing preliminary and final results in the coming days. The June 1st election has been widely viewed as one of Africa's largest democratic exercise this year, given Ethiopia's population size, geographic scale and the number of registered voters participating in the process.

[00:09:39]The Ethiopia, Africa's growing global influence was on display this week in Seoul. Africa arrived in Seoul this week not as recipient of aid but as power to be reckoned with. The 2026 Korea-Africa Foreign Ministers meeting drew delegates from 50 of 54 African nations to Lotte Hotel Seoul, a turnout that reflects the continent's growing confidence and its readiness to engage the world on its own terms. The summit, the first standalone ministerial South Korea has ever independently hosted for Africa, unfolded under the theme partnership for joint responses to global challenges. It was a gathering that signaled something important. Africa is no longer waiting to be invited to the global table. It is shaping the agenda. Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun acknowledged as much noting that Africa's critical mineral maritime corridor and economic dynamism have become indispensable to global stability, a frank recognition that the continent holds strategic card of genuine consequence. Both sides declared Africa's accelerating importance in critical minerals and global shipping routes and committed to building mutually beneficial economic cooperation language that places African nations as the co-architects of the relationship but not passive beneficiaries. He elaborated that we are gathering at a critical moment as the global order is undergoing rapid and profound change.

[00:11:01]>> We gather today at a critical juncture where the global order is rapidly shifting.

[00:11:11]The world is facing multifaceted challenges across various sectors such as supply chains, energy and food security and so on.

[00:11:26]These challenges are increasing uncertainty in the global economy.

[00:11:36]>> A second session produced shared commitments on climate resilience, health security, and regional peace, areas where African institutions and expertise are increasingly driving global solutions. Speaking on behalf of the African Union, Ghana's Foreign Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa drew a clear line. The era of aid dependent relationship is over. Africa is seeking deep equal economic partnership that reflect the continent's true value and ambition. His words landed with authority and soul. Listen.

[00:12:06]>> Strong partnerships, grounded in trust, mutual respect, and shared interests will remain essential in navigating an increasingly interconnected and rapidly changing global environment.

[00:12:22]>> Ablakwa also acknowledged South Korea's decision to proceed with the summit despite Ebola-related concerns in parts of the continent, calling it an act of confidence in Africa and a principled refusal to reduce a diverse continent of 1.4 billion people to a single negative headline. The Africa-Korea Business Forum running alongside the ministerial sessions put commercial muscle behind the diplomatic vision. Some 300 executive, trade specialist, and government officials convened to explore expanded investment, industrial cooperation, and resilient supply chain partnership. The road ahead points toward a second Korea-Africa summit in 2029 and the foundation being laid in Seoul as one of Africa can build on. The continent enters this partnership from a position of general leverage, holding the critical minerals the world needs, commanding vital maritime routes, and carrying the momentum of the AU's safety and continental integration.

[00:13:25]>> [music] [music] [music] >> Shifting to this hours business news.

[00:14:11]Some 200 companies gathered at the Johannesburg Stock Exchange on June 1st for the European Union's first ever investment road show in South Africa. A pivotal attempt to turn 12 billion euro pledge into real tangible projects on the ground. South Africa sitting on some of the world's largest reserves of platinum, group metals, manganese, and vanadium is exactly what Europe needs for its green energy transition, defense industries, and artificial intelligence supply chains. And South Africa's Trade Minister Parks Tau walked into the room with one message and zero ambiguity.

[00:14:44]Standing there there investors Tau made the country's position crystal clear.

[00:14:48]Our objective is not to export raw mineral, our objective is beneficiation, processing, and industrial development.

[00:14:54]He underscored South Africa's vast endowments of platinum group meet metals, manganese, vanadium, and other strategic minerals framing them not as exports, but as foundation for building industries at home. Africa is done being a raw material depot for the world. This isn't all talk, some serious money has already started moving. A 600 million euro framework loan to the Development Bank of Southern Africa has been secured to deliver 1,200 megawatts of green energy and displace 3.6 million tons of carbon dioxide. A separate 1.48 billion euro facility for state freight company Transnet, the first drawdown under a broader EU-EIB just energy transition pledge, will modernize South Africa's port and rail network infrastructure is moving. EU Parliament Foreign Affairs Committee Chair David McAllister acknowledged that the block has heard less learned lessons from its over-dependence on Russian energy and that diversification with South Africa at the center is now a strategic imperative. Minister Tao put it plainly, "The global gateway investment package gives us the capital framework. This roadshow gives us the project pipeline.

[00:16:03]The framework exists, the money is pledged, now Africa is watching to see whether European investment builds South African factories or just European profits on South African soil."

[00:16:22]Meanwhile, Tunisia recorded a sharp rise in olive oil export earnings during the first six Tunisia is one of the world's leading olive oil producers with production playing a central role in its agricultural sector and export earnings.

[00:16:36]The country benefits from favorable climate conditions and long-standing expertise in olive cultivation and oil production. In recent years, Tunisian olive oil has gained strong international demand, particularly in European markets such as Spain and Italy, as well as in North America and emerging destinations in Asia and Africa. The sector remains a key source of foreign currency and rural employment. The industry is characterized by a mix of bulk and bottled exports with extra virgin olive oil representing the largest share of shipments. Tunisia continues to invest in expanding its export markets and improving product value, including efforts to strengthen its presence in new destinations such as Brazil.

[00:17:16]Tunisia, one of the world's leading olive oil producers, continues to strengthen its position in the global market supported by rising output and expanding trade partnership.

[00:17:37]>> [music] >> And finally, sport news. Ghana head coach Carlos Queiroz on Tuesday announced a 26-man squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The squad, which contains few surprises, features three goalkeepers, nine defenders, seven midfielders, and seven forwards with most of the Black Stars key players included alongside several young talents recently called up. Mohammed Kudus and Alexander Djiku are the two notable absentees with both missing out through injury. Making its sixth World Cup appearance, Ghana has been drawn in Group L with Panama, England, and Croatia. The Black Stars will open their campaign against Panama on June 17 before facing England and Croatia. Ghana reached the quarterfinals in 2010 but failed to advance beyond the group stage in its last two World Cup appearances in Brazil and Qatar. The 2026 FIFA World Cup will be the first edition to feature 48 teams, including a record 10 African representatives.

[00:19:07]Now, let's take a look at the weather forecast across the continent.

[00:19:12]>> [music] [music] [music] >> That wraps up this hour's Pulse Africa news. Subscribe to our YouTube channel, like and follow our Facebook page, and for the latest headlines, follow us on TikTok. Don't miss our weekly program, Africa We Want. I am Sammyah Muhammad.

[00:19:45]Thank you for joining us, and goodbye.

[00:20:11]>> Africa is facing a growing climate crisis. Across the continent, floods, droughts, severe storms, and other extreme weather events are becoming more frequent and more intense.

[00:20:24]Between 1970 and 2021, weather, climate, and water-related disasters claimed more than 733,000 lives in Africa and caused economic losses estimated at $43 billion.

[00:20:40]Today, African countries lose between 2 and 5% of their GDP every year due to climate extremes, while some nations allocate up to 9% of their national budgets to emergency response and recovery.

[00:20:55]The impacts are widespread, affecting agriculture, infrastructure, water resources, and the livelihoods of millions of people.

[00:21:04]Adaptation costs in sub-Saharan Africa alone are projected at between 30 and 50 billion dollars annually over the next decade.

[00:21:14]In response to these mounting challenges, African institutions and international partners are strengthening efforts to improve disaster preparedness and climate resilience.

[00:21:25]Here is what Jahan Elgazzar, head of division representing the director of sustainable environment and blue economy at the African Union Commission, said on the issue.

[00:21:37]>> The next actions, before addressing them, I think it's important to remind what we have already.

[00:21:46]For the moment, and we have been investing a lot for providing early warning, all the necessary equipment to member states for them to anticipate and to follow up the climate change impacts and and hazards to come.

[00:22:02]Just let me remind that Africa is the one is the continent that is facing a lot of disasters, a lot of impacts.

[00:22:11]For example, floods, extreme heat. All these disasters impact the continent. So, this is why we are supporting member states to get access to early warning systems by providing them with the situation rooms, all the necessary equipment for them to predict. Now, next step is to have more relevant information because for now, sometimes the information come late, sometimes it is not [music] sufficient for for for the actions to be taken on the on the on the ground. So, once this information, even the information we have on on and we are providing to member states are good, we need more robust information. Then this information to the step after is that member states and the government should use this information and we need action. We need them to be prepared and ready to to react and to support population to react to these disasters to come. And the main objective is to make this information accessible to the end users using the appropriate languages, the appropriate tools, the appropriate communication to get it accessible to this population and also to support and they need a capacity building for this populations to um uh to be able to react based on the situation. In case of extreme flood, they know what they have to do. In case of extreme heat or any other disasters, they know what they have to do in terms of reaction. And of course that should also be done within an internal and national coordination using several ministries.

[00:24:13]But also in the in the frame of regional and continental coordination. We need to to be able to support each other at the regional level but also at the continental level with exchanging experience. We know that many countries have experienced disasters. We know Mozambique, unfortunately many people were impacted.

[00:24:38]We have Malawi but also other countries where uh they can share also their experience. We know in Morocco they had a flood around February but the reaction was fast. The information were was really used. Uh many thousands of people were evacuated. No one was uh No No death. But then there are experiences that was learned and can be shared with other countries so that we have this coordination continental coordination between the countries.

[00:25:18]>> One major initiative addressing this challenge is the Strengthening Early Warning in Africa or SEWA program.

[00:25:25]The program supports African institutions in using satellite technology and climate data to improve disaster preparedness and response.

[00:25:34]Cihan Al Gouzi explained.

[00:25:40]>> Satellite's role is important. Now we have this equipment as I was saying, we have the early warning system to follow up precipitation, water flow, all kind of parameters that we have to follow up events, climate events. Now with the satellites and high resolution and last satellites that exist, we will have more efficient information and timely information. If we have the information on time, this area will be having a cyclone.

[00:26:15]We alert member states and even member states when they have the equipment or even the region have the equipment, we alert the member state to be impacted.

[00:26:24]And when the information is very accurate and very precise, they take this action. It is translated into action on the ground to do the necessary in terms of evacuation, in terms of providing the necessary equipment to the population and also for the infrastructure. We know that some infrastructure are more adapted to uh some kind of disasters. I can give the example of Mozambique or also in in Sahel region. In data show that in the same time or same month every year, we will be having floods. So, the government should expect in this place, we need this kind of infrastructure. This has also other parameters. We can say talk about agriculture. If we know that this time of the year, we will be having floods or drought, we can adjust our cultures, our crops, so that when the disaster comes, all this agricultural cycle is over, it's finished, so that we don't expose the populations to to food insecurity, let's say. That's this tools ensure support to farmers, support to the government, so to to ensure food security. Uh that can also be used for water reserves. We know that some areas have more water than others.

[00:27:59]That can also support coordination in terms of like having some dams that will allow dispatching water to the neighbor countries where there is a lack of water. So, there are many things that can be do in terms of infrastructure, in terms of agriculture and food security.

[00:28:19]It can be also in health.

[00:28:22]Uh we know that some um epidemia comes when we have some floods, some we know unfortunately that leads to epidemias. So, using this information can also support Africa, African Union organs on health, but also international community to support and to get ready to uh this kind of uh epidemics. The again, the purpose is to prevent and take uh a step before everything happens. And satellites and this kind of program programs under SEWA uh is one of the key ones that we need to implement so that we are ready for disasters. We know that disasters will come. It's not a matter of if they will or they will not come. They will come because of uh climate change, they are coming and the intensity is higher than even before.

[00:29:21]So, we know it will come, but we should be ready to reduce the impact on population, on their houses, on their livelihood, livestock, all this environment uh that's that need to be uh well considered to save uh our brothers and sisters all over Africa.

[00:29:42]>> Running from January 2025 to June 2029, SEWA is part of the African-European Union Space Partnership.

[00:29:52]The program is led by the African Union and Commission in collaboration with the European Organisation for the exploitation of meteorological satellite or EUMETSAT and the European Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasts, ECMWF.

[00:30:08]SEWA focuses on impact-based forecasting, an approach that goes beyond predicting weather conditions to identifying their potential effects on people, crops, livestock, and infrastructure.

[00:30:22]Using satellite data, digital forecasting tools, and regional expertise, the program aims to support faster and more effective decision-making.

[00:30:32]Meanwhile, Vincent Gabagelo from EUMETSAT noted that climate hazards continue to affect millions across Africa.

[00:30:41]Floods destroy homes and roads, droughts reduce food production and water availability, while storms disrupt communities and national economies.

[00:30:51]He emphasized that impact-based early warning systems can significantly reduce these losses.

[00:30:58]Studies show that just 24 hours of advanced warning can cut damages by as much as 30% while investments in early warning systems can prevent major economic losses every year.

[00:31:15]>> Digitalization of met services is an important step that that is being done by several met services in Africa. Uh this is to make the local weather information much more easily reachable by other entities uh through the the satellite data actually it has also a technological taste I would say so we do also provide all satellite data in various ways including uh in in digital formats through a web map services and by example the the met services in countries can directly integrate our satellite data in their own system and in their own interface either for their own use or also to inform the public uh about the weather.

[00:32:02]In the use of satellite data and to transform the satellite data or to use them for weather forecasting also for hydrology and to serve actually several other applications across the country.

[00:32:15]Uh Ethiopian met services is using satellite data since more than 20 years 30 years they were one of the first in Africa actually to connect to our satellite data meteosat and uh they are in view of the the very large surface of the countries is not easy to get information about weather in every places in Ethiopia but thanks to the satellite data, they can get this this very accurate and very frequent information about the evolution of of of weather. This is one of the inputs they are using to do weather forecasting. They need also a lot of weather station across the country to validate the satellite data and to bring more detailed information in some places. But we have a very strong cooperation with Ethiopia. We had the EUMETSAT user forum in Ethiopia in 2012 that gather all people from all across Africa. The African meteorological satellite application facilities. This facilities is African owned and the main purpose is for African to produce their own satellite based product to support meteorological services across the continent to provide better early warning for severe weather events or other type of meteorological applications in the future like for aviations, for agriculture, or for health also.

[00:33:42]Due to climate change, there is more frequent severe weather events. So, it's very important to have accurate tools to monitor continuously the weather and the climate change. And satellites are some instruments that can monitor very well the weather and the climate over Africa. EUMETSAT operates the Meteosat satellites. They are located 30,000 km above the Equator, above the Gulf of Guinea, and we get a new image over weather over Africa every 10 minutes. And what is very important is for this image to reach the forecasters office in each countries in a very quick manner so that forecasters can have a good overview of what is happening in their countries in terms of weather events and be able to transform this information into an early warning in case there is a severe weather that can threat livelihood or infrastructure or even life of people.

[00:34:44]>> SEWA is also supporting regional pilot projects tailored to local climate risks.

[00:34:50]This include flash flood monitoring in East Africa through ICPAC, severe thunderstorms and coastal risk forecasting in West Africa with ACMAD, as well as drought monitoring initiatives in other regions, Vincent Gabagillo added.

[00:35:08]>> We are cooperating with the African Union since more than 20 years in facilitating the access and the use of satellite data for weather forecasting, for environmental monitoring, and for a lot of various application. Space is a big element of the EU-Africa cooperation.

[00:35:29]It's a program in itself. There is the EU-Africa-Europe space partnership program. And as part of this program, we are very concrete. So, we would like we we want to the strengthening of early warning in Africa program to implement infrastructure in each and every countries so that national meteorological services get the most accurate possible information from space to inform their populations, their governments about the situation.

[00:36:00]This is valid for weather forecast, for for the short-term severe weather, but also for climate. Typically, satellite data are used also to look at El Niño-La Niña effect. There are also climate outlook forum where African specialist meet, look at the data, and provide seasonal forecast for the next 3 months about how the the the climate and the weather will will be like in the coming 3 months. This helps, by example informing farmers of what is the best moment to plant seeds or managing various resources for agriculture but also for energy or for the health sector or for disaster resilience. Our satellite we observe the the full continent of Africa on every 10 minutes.

[00:36:44]That means it's you know weather is is is coming across countries very fast. So this is important not only to have information on a specific countries but on the overall continent. Otherwise with the satellites from EUMETSAT and from the Copernicus program there are some satellites that provide better resolutions. By example we can follow the evolution of vegetations that can inform by example of the potential of food of crop monitoring is crop forecasting etc. And and there is a lot of application also for deforestation, soil degradations and things like that.

[00:37:24]What is important at EUMETSAT by example on our side we do operate EUMETSAT satellite, Copernicus satellites but the added value of what how to transform the satellite data into useful information for the countries is done by national institutions. So our role as EUMETSAT is to provide the satellite data as quickly as possible to the national institution for them to do all the interpretations, to look at all the the parameters of the variables they would like to see like the evolution of vegetations or the evolution of the of the agricultural productions by example.

[00:38:04]>> SEWA operates through partnerships involving the African Union Commission, regional climate centers, national meteorological agencies and international organizations. The initiative is designed to strengthen institutional capacity while promoting knowledge exchange between African and European meteorological institutions.

[00:38:25]>> AMSAF is part of a project called SEVA, Strengthening Early Warning in Africa, and we are working alongside EUMETSAT as well as the African Union Commission in this project, and it's structured around five different outputs, and our main responsibility is a so-called impact-based forecast, and helping African partners to develop those impact-based forecasts.

[00:38:49]Of course, AMSAF is an important milestone. It is one of the inputs also to impact-based forecasts, and can then be used to see what the impact of hazardous weather will be like.

[00:39:01]In our approach, we focus on We break it down to regions, so Sub-Saharan Africa is broken down into four different regions, Eastern, Western, Central, and Southern Africa.

[00:39:12]And then, for instance, in Eastern Africa, we would work with a regional coordinator, and we will have different pilots in uh different countries, and there we work together with the national meteorological and hydrological services.

[00:39:29]>> Caroline Aiko from the European Centre for medium-range weather forecasts explained that the program combines satellite observations with local data systems. The program also includes specialized training for meteorologists, climate [music] forecasters, and extension workers.

[00:39:46]It supports skills development in digital forecasting tools and data analysis, while competitive grants encourage participation from African private sector innovators working in the space and climate data economy, Caroline Aiko added.

[00:40:02]>> Climate change, of course, is worsening some of the hazards. That means it's also important to predict them well.

[00:40:09]Events like heat waves, for instance, or droughts might become more severe, and it's also important to know when they start.

[00:40:16]And this is why impact-based forecasting is so important to have the the right data, to have good models to predict it, and to know when those events will start, and then make sure that um people are prepared, and also they know how severe an event will be. And we will work together with uh meteorological agencies and enable them to issue those impact-based forecasts, and there was also better warnings for their society.

[00:40:46]We are just starting. Our grant will be launched in June. So far we did a scoping study, and we assessed the whole landscape in Africa. And now we draft this uh so-called call for grants, and then different consortia can apply, and it's focused on establishing European-African partnership. That means we really want to have the African partners on board. We want them to lead and also to co-develop and to profit from all the data and all the products that are there, and also use it for their purposes. And that also mean adapted to their structure, to their needs and requirements.

[00:41:25]>> These efforts align closely with Agenda 2063, Africa's long-term strategic framework aimed [music] at promoting inclusive growth, regional integration, and resilience. Agenda 2063 places strong emphasis on science, technology, innovation, and partnerships as drivers of a prosperous and secure continent.

[00:41:47]Sahel contributes to these goals by strengthening early warning systems and reducing climate-related risks that threaten development progress.

[00:41:57]Experts say early warning systems deliver strong economic returns, with every dollar invested generating multiple dollars in avoided losses.

[00:42:07]>> At the first climate science Sahel forum in Windhoek last June, we've seen real progress on the infrastructure rollout first with the Puma and Climeserv stations installed across the continent, on capacity building secondly, with training programs at the regional training centers in Nairobi and Niamey, and grants to spur the local innovation, and thirdly, with the policy momentum.

[00:42:31]More AU member states are now operationalizing the national framework for climate services using integrated data to inform the decisions.

[00:42:39]But, we know challenges remain.

[00:42:41]From data usability to last mile delivery, to ensure that AMSAF's governance is robust and sustainable, that its tools are user-friendly for national meteorological services, and eventually, that its benefits reach even the most remote communities.

[00:42:58]Now, let me talk about the EU's commitment in this.

[00:43:01]The European Union is proud to support the this initiative through the Africa-EU Space Partnership program, with an overall investment of 100 million euros across its pillars.

[00:43:12]Our goal is clear, to scale up Africa's space capabilities not as a one-off project, but as a long-term partnership for resilience.

[00:43:19]Whether through Copernicus open data, the Team Europe initiative on climate adaptation, or seminal projects like GMES in Africa, we are committed to ensuring the systems are African-led, African-owned, and African-sustained.

[00:43:33]>> Although scaling such systems across Africa requires significant investment, collaborative financing models involving African governments, the European Union under its Global Gateway strategy, and other development partners are helping bridge the funding gap.

[00:43:50]Alexandre de True, team leader for green, digital, and economic transformation at the European Union delegation to the African Union, said, "Collaborative programs such as SEWA help prioritize cost-effective solutions, including stronger observation networks, forecasting systems, and information sharing mechanisms. He added that improved regional coordination is essential, especially as climate hazards increasingly cross national borders.

[00:44:22]>> AMSAF matters because climate-related disasters are not just statistics. They disrupt lives, livelihoods, and economies.

[00:44:30]Over 221 million people in Africa were affected by weather, climate, and water-related disasters between 2021 and 2025, marking this period as the deadliest climate crisis in over a decade.

[00:44:44]AMSAF is designed to bridge a critical gap, transforming satellite data in into actionable, life-saving warnings before hazards become disasters.

[00:44:54]However, this facility is not just about technology, as has been said multiple times, it is about empowerment.

[00:45:00]By enabling African institutions to generate their own high-resolution meteorological products, AMSAF will strengthen impact-based forecasting, shifting from what the weather will be to what the weather will do to communities, infrastructures, and economies. This aligns perfectly with the UN's early warning for all initiative and the EU's integrated African strategy on meteorology.

[00:45:24]>> SEWA is also promoting private sector innovation through grants, workshops, and partnerships that support locally developed applications, such as mobile early warning alerts and climate advisory services for farmers.

[00:45:40]The program works closely with partners from the World Meteorological Organization and builds on existing African initiatives to create sustainable systems led and operated by African institutions themselves.

[00:46:01]Through coordinated action and regional collaboration, SEWA aims to reduce the impact of climate hazards, protect lives and livelihoods, and strengthen long-term resilience across the continent.

[00:46:15]As Africa continues to face growing climate challenge, programs like SEWA demonstrate how partnerships between African institutions, regional climate centers, and international organizations can strengthen preparedness and support the objectives of Effective early warning systems powered by satellite technology, scientific innovation, and local collaboration remain a critical tool in building a safer and more climate resilient Africa.

[00:46:51]>> [music]