“If we look at what Lake Chad was and what it is today, we understand that climate change is real, and it needs to be addressed”, the newly-appointed UN Special Representative to the African Union (AU) has told UN News in her first major interview.

Addressing the nexus between peace and security, underdevelopment and climate change, former Ghanaian Foreign Minister, Hanna Tetteh, highlighted the importance of helping Sahel countries to develop more resilience, to deal with the impact of climate change.

Ms. Tetteh reiterated her commitment to work on preventive diplomacy, in line with the joint frameworks signed in 2017 and 2018 on peace, security and development, between the AU and the UN – a partnership which Secretary-General António Guterres has described as crucial to the future of multilateralism.

Based in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa since the beginning of January, Ms. Tetteh told Cristina Silveiro what her priorities were for the year ahead.