UNDP urges Malawi to strengthen focus on climate change and human rights as vulnerable communities bear the brunt

Malawi needs to sharpen its focus on the connections between climate change, human rights and environmental protection, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has said, warning that vulnerable communities continue to shoulder the worst effects of the climate crisis.

Speaking at a joint UNDP and Malawi Human Rights Commission (MHRC) media engagement on environmental and climate justice in Lilongwe, UNDP Malawi’s chief technical adviser on rule of law, Rowland Cole, said climate change was fuelling displacement and deepening inequalities across the country.

Cole called for closer examination of how the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment intersects with the impacts of climate change and broader human rights obligations.

MHRC executive secretary Habiba Osman echoed those concerns, arguing that Malawi’s existing environmental laws fail to adequately incorporate human rights considerations, as well as the technical dimensions of climate and environmental justice.

Osman also raised concerns over chronic underfunding of climate-related work in the country, saying significantly more resources would be needed if Malawi is to meaningfully address the mounting challenges posed by the crisis.