According to an excerpt from a new UN-mandated report prepared by the Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency (EEAA) on the effects of climate change in Egypt, global warming could introduce new diseases into Egypt and exacerbate existing public health problems.
“Egypt is one of the most vulnerable countries to the potential risks and impacts of climate change,” reads the report, entitled, “Egypt’s Second National Communication to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).”
“Health effects of climate change are expected to be particularly significant for vulnerable populations such as elderly, children, infirm and poor,” the study states.
The report also claims that global warming could lead to the spread of various communicable diseases in Egypt. The report cites studies showing that the snail hosts that carry Shistosomiasis, also known as Bilharzia, might extend their range as water temperatures rise. It also notes that extending irrigation networks to compensate for expected global warming-induced water shortages could lead to increased human exposure to the parasite.
Although the report notes that Egypt has not reported an indigenous case of malaria since 1998, it details how global warming may cause Egypt to fall prey to the disease, which infects nearly 500 million people per year worldwide. Not only will global warming “extend the range and growth season” of mosquitoes–which often serve as vehicles for malaria–but it also threatens to “accelerate the development of the malaria pathogens in mosquitoes, increasing the efficiency of disease infection,” according to the report.
Over 120 million people worldwide are infected by Lymphatic Filariasis, which is endemic throughout much of Africa. In Egypt, the disease is primarily found in the Nile Delta Region. Like malaria, mosquitoes are the disease’s primary vector. According to the report, “extreme climactic conditions will likely effect vector abundance, elevating the risk of outbreaks.”
The UNFCCC report also focuses on Rift Valley Fever, another mosquito-borne disease that affects both humans and livestock. The report notes that “although Rift Valley Fever has generally been confined to sub-Saharan Africa, an outbreak occurred in 1977/78 in the irrigated region of Egypt with devastating consequences.” According to the report, an increase in the mosquito population could cause “epidemics of Rift Valley Fever of immense proportions.”
The authors of the report note that Egypt is also at risk of an increase in water-borne and food-borne diseases due to global warming. It predicts the spread of such diseases due to global-warming induced floods “that cause contamination of public water supplies,” along with “droughts that encourage unhygienic practices because of water shortages.” In particular, the report postulates that such changes could lead to higher incidences of childhood diarrhea, a major cause of death among children worldwide.
The report to the UN also focuses on the relationship between global warming and non-communicable diseases. Specifically, the report foresees an increase in the number of heat strokes as a direct result of higher temperatures. More ominously, the report indicates that malnutrition rates in Egypt could skyrocket as a result of climate change. “Global warming and changes in rainfall patterns will affect water resources and food production capacity,” the report states. It continues: “This in turn shall affect agricultural cropping patterns and production, having a severe effect on food intake per capita, particularly in the developing countries.”
However, the report notes that Egypt might be able to mitigate the worst of these health-related impacts. It suggests that, through the improvement of existing vaccination programs and the provision of high-quality health care to vulnerable populations, the spread of communicable diseases related to global warming can be checked. The report also states that Egypt should develop “early-warning systems and control programs for infectious diseases,” which would rely on a “collaboration between meteorological and health services.”
The report–which also details possible impacts of global warming on Egypt’s water resources, coastal zones, housing, roads, tourism and agricultural sector–was funded by a US$406,000 grant from the Global Environmental Faculty (GEF). It follows up on an earlier report prepared for the UNFCCC in 1999.
