The Ministry of Health (MoH) recently took part in a virtual Climate Health African Network for Collaboration and Engagement (CHANCE) 2022 held in Pretoria, South Africa.
CHANCE was established to develop synergies, and also facilitate cooperation and knowledge exchange among key stakeholders in the health sector across southern Africa, on the backdrop of growing threats of climate change impacts on health.
CHANCE focuses on air pollution, extreme health and infectious diseases. CHANCE is part of an international health and climate change network of research projects dubbed ENBEL (Enhancing Belmont) Research Action, geared at supporting the EU policy on climate change.
Minister of Health, Edwin Dikoloti reiterated the importance of inculcating a culture of prioritising investment in key health systems.
"We strive to continue empowering individuals to enjoy their highest attainable health status, with supportive and resilient health systems as a key investment to assure health security."
MoH has indicated that prioritising resilient health systems is vital as climatic changes such as air pollution, extreme heat, and infectious diseases, contribute to an increased rate of cases of respiratory diseases, cardiac and heart disease, and infectious airborne and skin infections.
Dikoloti noted that this challenged MoH to develop an Adaptation Plan to ensure that there is resilience to the impacts of climate change on health systems.
President Mokgweetsi Masisi has also promised to improve the country's health system. He told the Kigali Summit in Rwanda last month that Botswana spent in excess of 20 percent of its total national budget on health in the past five years.
The government has managed to build resilient health systems and will continue to improve on efficiency, Masisi said.
"This will ensure that we are in a better position to fight pandemics and also address other health issues such as non-communicable diseases and malaria."
The Working Group II report, Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability, highlights that changing temperatures, particularly extreme heat, will cause many health challenges.
Nowadays sub-Saharan Africa experiences extreme temperatures due to climate change - the cold is extreme and so is the heat. The report indicates that in neighbouring South Africa for example, between 1991 and 2018, human-induced climate change was responsible for
nearly half of heat-related mortality, with the elderly and children under five years most vulnerable to heat exposure.
The report further indicates that extreme weather is also associated with increased rates of anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, and depression. High temperatures are strongly associated with poor mental health and suicide in many southern African countries. Exposure to extreme heat directly influences emotional control, aggression, and violent behaviour, escalating rates of interpersonal violence, when temperatures are above 30 degrees, compared with temperatures below 20," reads the report. It also indicates that over the past few years, there has also been a noted increase in respiratory and skin diseases due erratic conditions due to erratic climate conditions.
CHANCE was established to develop synergies, and also facilitate cooperation and knowledge exchange among key stakeholders in the health sector across southern Africa, on the backdrop of growing threats of climate change impacts on health.
CHANCE focuses on air pollution, extreme health and infectious diseases. CHANCE is part of an international health and climate change network of research projects dubbed ENBEL (Enhancing Belmont) Research Action, geared at supporting the EU policy on climate change.
Minister of Health, Edwin Dikoloti reiterated the importance of inculcating a culture of prioritising investment in key health systems.
"We strive to continue empowering individuals to enjoy their highest attainable health status, with supportive and resilient health systems as a key investment to assure health security."
MoH has indicated that prioritising resilient health systems is vital as climatic changes such as air pollution, extreme heat, and infectious diseases, contribute to an increased rate of cases of respiratory diseases, cardiac and heart disease, and infectious airborne and skin infections.
Dikoloti noted that this challenged MoH to develop an Adaptation Plan to ensure that there is resilience to the impacts of climate change on health systems.
President Mokgweetsi Masisi has also promised to improve the country's health system. He told the Kigali Summit in Rwanda last month that Botswana spent in excess of 20 percent of its total national budget on health in the past five years.
The government has managed to build resilient health systems and will continue to improve on efficiency, Masisi said.
"This will ensure that we are in a better position to fight pandemics and also address other health issues such as non-communicable diseases and malaria."
The Working Group II report, Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability, highlights that changing temperatures, particularly extreme heat, will cause many health challenges.
Nowadays sub-Saharan Africa experiences extreme temperatures due to climate change - the cold is extreme and so is the heat. The report indicates that in neighbouring South Africa for example, between 1991 and 2018, human-induced climate change was responsible for
nearly half of heat-related mortality, with the elderly and children under five years most vulnerable to heat exposure.
The report further indicates that extreme weather is also associated with increased rates of anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, and depression. High temperatures are strongly associated with poor mental health and suicide in many southern African countries. Exposure to extreme heat directly influences emotional control, aggression, and violent behaviour, escalating rates of interpersonal violence, when temperatures are above 30 degrees, compared with temperatures below 20," reads the report. It also indicates that over the past few years, there has also been a noted increase in respiratory and skin diseases due erratic conditions due to erratic climate conditions.
