UN Secretary-General: No country is safe from the devastating effects of extreme weather
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said today, Wednesday, that no country is safe from the devastating effects of extreme weather, stressing that saving lives means making early warning systems accessible to everyone.
Guterres continued, in a speech before the World Meteorological Organization in Geneva: “Early warning systems are effective; It gives farmers the ability to protect their crops and livestock. It enables families to evacuate safely. And it protects entire communities from destruction.”
The Secretary-General of the United Nations continued – in his speech transmitted by the official website of the United Nations – “We know that disaster-related deaths are at least six times lower in countries that have good early warning systems,” explaining that just 24 hours’ notice of the occurrence of a dangerous event can reduce damage by up to 30%.
In 2022, Guterres launched the “Early Warnings for All” initiative to ensure the protection of everyone, everywhere. With a warning system by 2027.
Progress has been made, with more than half of all countries now reportedly equipped with multi-hazard early warning systems. The UN Secretary-General acknowledged that the world’s least developed countries have almost doubled their capacity since official reporting began, “but we still have a long way to go.”
At a special meeting of the World Meteorological Congress earlier this week, countries endorsed an urgent call to action aimed at filling remaining gaps in monitoring.
In turn, the head of the world body warned Meteorologist Celeste Saulo, who called for expanded adoption of early warning systems, said that the effects of climate change are accelerating, as “more extreme weather destroys lives and livelihoods and undermines hard-won development gains.” She spoke of “a profound opportunity to harness climate intelligence and technological progress to build a more resilient future.” For all.
Weather, water and climate-related risks have caused the deaths of more than two million people in the past five decades, with developing countries responsible for 90% of deaths, according to the World Meteorological Organization.
Guterres stressed the fact that increased funding will be a key factor so that countries can “act with speed and scale.” “The Most Wanted”. He said: “Reaching every community requires an increase in funding. But many developing countries are constrained by limited fiscal space, slow growth, crushing debt burdens, and rising systemic risks.”
Guterres also urged action at the source of the climate crisis, in an effort to limit rapidly advancing global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels – even knowing that this target will be exceeded over the years. The next few years, he said.
Guterres warned: “One thing is already clear: we will not be able to contain global warming below 1.5 degrees in the next few years. Overtaking is now inevitable. Which will mean that we will go through a period, greater or smaller, of higher or lower intensity, above 1.5 degrees in the coming years, however, we are not doomed to live with 1.5 degrees.” If a global paradigm shift occurs and countries take appropriate action.
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