Climate change, once perceived as a long-term environmental issue, is now an immediate threat to safety and prosperity, especially for the most vulnerable people that are hit hardest by increasing weather extremes (SPACE, 2021). The African continent is considered to be the most vulnerable to climate change, due to its populations' reliance on subsistence agricultural production and extractive activities, which are greatly affected by natural disasters coupled with poor financial, technical and institutional capacity to adapt.

Southern Africa is already experiencing rainfall variability and higher temperatures. Currently, the countries most at risk to climate stress are: Madagascar, Mozambique, Mauritius, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Botswana and parts of Namibia, Angola, Zambia and Swaziland (Climate Diplomacy). The frequency of droughts in sub-Saharan Africa nearly tripled by 2019 and has more than quadrupled for storms while increasing tenfold in the case of floods.” (World Bank 2021). These climate-related disasters leave in their wake loss of life, injury, or other health impacts, as well as damage and loss to property, infrastructure, livelihoods, service provision, ecosystems and environmental resources. In the period from 2022 to 2023, Southern Africa faced a series of severe cyclones which include Tropical Storm Ana, Tropical Cyclones Batsirai and Emnati, Tropical Storm Dumako, Tropical Storm Gombe, Tropical Storm Jasmine and most recently, Cyclone Freddy. Amongst other countries, Cyclone Freddy came with heavy rains, wind and flooding in Malawi and Mozambique, which damaged houses, schools, clinics and crops. Floods washed roads away, leaving a number of villages stranded. Thousands of families lost their food, homes and means of income. The cyclone displaced over half a million people as Mozambique and Malawi faced worst cholera outbreak in more than a decade.

When crisis hits, effective social protection support is often a crucial factor in addressing immediate shocks and determining how quickly populations can quickly get back to normality. All too often, however, national systems are either too weak to respond, or are not designed to have the flexibility to adjust. Social protection is a key policy instrument to manage social risks, arising from life cycle and income risks, and plays a central role in managing climate shocks such as droughts and floods. A shock-responsive social protection system is one that is able to respond flexibly during or after a covariate shock.

To commemorate Zambia’s social protection week under the theme, “Adaptive, Shock Responsive and Inclusive Social Protection,” SASPEN in partnership with FES and FAO plans to host a webinar to reflect on the region’s preparedness in responding to climate related disasters. The webinar will ultimately look at the experiences of Malawi, Mozambique and Mauritius in adopting shock-responsive social protection to counter climate change effects.