A humanitarian worker is pictured in a flood-submerged homestead in Panyijiar County of Unity State. (Photo: Courtesy).

President Salva Kiir said Saturday climate change factors have negatively affected peace and security in South Sudan while addressing the UN Climate Change conference in the United Arab Emirates.

Kiir told over a hundred world leaders gathered in Dubai, that his underdeveloped country, which accounts for little to no carbon emission, is bearing the brunt of climate disasters.

He said four years of floods and droughts that have affected swathes of territories in South Sudan’s north and east, have wiped out livelihoods and forced communities to fight over scarce resource.

“Your excellencies, as the world’s youngest nation and underdeveloped, South Sudan with no or little carbon emission is seriously impacted by climate change,” the president said.

“For four years now, the country is suffering from floods, draughts, excessive heats, high temperatures, and irregular rainfall patterns. This climate change related factors have negatively affected the livelihoods of our people.”

The president further blames the rampant subnational conflicts in the country on friction between displaced and host communities as they compete for survival.

“The people are internally displaced and are forced to fight over pasture and water. That has caused subnational conflicts between displaced and host communities. So, peace and security are clearly affected as a result of climate change.”

President Kiir further urged the biggest polluters of the world to consider financing projects that will tackle climate change factors affecting poor and developing nations.

“We have come to this COP28 with the hope that we the world leaders, will commit ourselves to the implementation of the provisions of the Paris Agreement.”

“I therefore urge the developed countries which are the highest carbon emitters in this compound to increase their efforts to reduce carbon emission by over 45% in order for us to keep global temperature below 1.5 degrees.”