The African Union Commission (AUC) will on Wednesday 3rd of March 2010, join the rest of the African community within the continent and in the Diaspora, to commemorate the Africa Environment Day under the theme : “African Resilience to Climate Change : Biodiversity Conservation and Enhancing Traditional Knowledge”.
This year, the celebration of the World Environment Day 2010 will be hosted by the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania. Activities marking the day will include: official launch of the 2010 Environment Day through speeches by the African Union Commission, the host Government and development partners focusing on the theme; the planting of trees; environmental sanitation activities; essay competitions by school children and distribution of publicity materials on the protection of environment.
Organized by the Department of the Rural Economy and Agriculture, the World Environment Day is commemorated to raise awareness on sustainable environmental management among decision makers at national, regional and continental levels in order to recall the climate change as the main factor of land degradation and desertification, results of hunger, deprivation, poverty and underdevelopment in Africa. “Activities marking the Day are undertaken by the African Union Commission and by all Member States to raise the awareness of local communities, responsible of their land”, says the organisers.
According to the organisers, the Copenhagen Conference in December 2009 was a major step for the African Continent because the African leaders showed their will to build a better continent by fighting climate change.
Worth recalling that, March 3 has been commemorated by the AUC and the Members States every year, since 2003. The Africa Environment Day was designated by the then Organization of African Unity (OAU) Council of Ministers in their Seventy-Sixth Ordinary Session, which took place in Durban, South Africa in July 2002, when they adopted Decision CM/Dec.685 (LXXVI) calling on all Member States to commemorate March 3 every year as Africa Environment Day. This Decision was the recognition of the numerous environmental challenges confronting the African continent, which over the years have been further aggravated by loss of biological diversity, climate change and desertification.
Journalists are invited to cover the event on the 3rd of March 2010 in Tanzania.
Source: African Union Commission (AUC)
