WCC NEWS: As floods strike East Africa, church officials fear nature is hitting back

As climate change induced floods terrorize communities in East Africa, clerics and officials here fear that nature was hitting back. Floods have struck Kenya and Tanzania, leaving behind a trail of death, destruction, and displacement. Floods are most intense in some of the same areas previously struck by a lengthy drought described by the UN as the worst in four decades. Climate change induced floods have affected many countries on the African continent in recent years. Here, local farmer James Kuony Malual walks through a flooded piece of land in Akobo, South Sudan. Photo: Paul Jeffrey/Life on Earth Pictures, 2021 25 April 2024 On 24 April, the Kenya meteorological department warned of more rains, as the number of people affected by the floods continued to rise. At least 38 people have died in the flooding and more than 11,000 households are displaced so far, according to the Kenya Red Cross. Over 27,000 acres of farmland are also submerged in the floods that have killed an estimated 4,800 livestock. “I think this is most unfortunate. The situation is dire. People have lost everything, including their homes,” said Rev. Dr Emily Awino Onyango, assistant bishop of the Bondo Anglican Diocese in western Kenya. “The people who do not have anything are most affected. Even if you give them food and blankets, that cannot replace homes.” The floods have affected 23 out of Kenya’s 47 counties. They are as a result of heavy rains that started mid-March. The raging waters are tearing apart roads, breaking bridges, and uprooting sewer lines. Farmlands and homes have been submerged, with food crops being swept away. In mid-April, floods in Tanzania killed at least 58 people, and displaced 126,000 others, mainly in the coastal regions. Floods also destroyed more than 75,000 farms, according to news reports. The disaster comes on the heels of the United Nations Environment Assembly which passed 15 resolutions to tackle the three planetary challenges of climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution. “The world needs action. The world needs speed. The world needs real lasting change,” Inger Andersen, UN Environmental Programme director said at the end of the 26 February-1 March gathering in Nairobi. At the same time, Bishop Onyango said the weather disaster underlined humanity’s failure to care for creation and the environment. She urged an immediate refocusing on the care to slow down such occurrences. “We have not cared for creation and these are the effects. One of the biggest problems…is cutting down trees and the people settling on the banks of lakes and rivers. We all know that should not be allowed,” the bishop said. “As Christians, I think we need to come back urgently to the care of the creation.” Rev. Dr Ezekiel Lesmore, director of Programmes at the All Africa Conference of Churches, said nature was angry at humanity for brutalizing it in the quest for wealth and technological advancement. “Humanity has acted without due consideration of the ecosystem and the roles that each component plays in our collective wellbeing. We have failed in our stewardship roles,” said Lesmore, a Nigerian Lutheran priest. “Of course, the communities that are affected in Africa [have] committed the least crime against nature.” “The industrial nations must be held responsible and made to compensate [less developed nations] through the established Loss and Damage Fund,” he added. Both local and international church relief and development agencies are responding to the emergencies. The Anglican Development Services of Kenya is delivering some basic needs, such as food and blankets, in some of the affected areas. “I think the government is not doing enough.  You know, we always wait until floods occur. The government must do its work…and ensure the people do not construct homes on the lakes and river banks,” said the bishop. The bishop stressed prioritization of water harvesting for when there will be no water during the next phase of drought, which may come as soon as the next few months. See more

The World Council of Churches promotes Christian unity in faith, witness and service for a just and peaceful world. An ecumenical fellowship of churches founded in 1948, today the WCC brings together 352 Protestant, Orthodox, Anglican and other churches representing more than 580 million Christians in over 120 countries, and works cooperatively with the Roman Catholic Church. The WCC general secretary is Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay from the Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa. Media contact: +41 79 507 6363; www.oikoumene.org/press Our visiting address is: World Council of Churches 150 route de Ferney Geneve 2 1211 Switzerland