This is because natural disasters are becoming more frequent and severe due to climate change.
Antonio Guterres, U.N. Secretary General, stated that the project with Geneva-based World Meteorological Organization (WMO) aims to make alert systems used by rich countries accessible to the developing world.
Guterres stated that today, one third of the world’s population, mainly in developing countries and small islands, is not protected by early warning systems. It is worse in Africa: 60% of the population lacks coverage.
He said, “This is unacceptable, especially with climate impacts certain to get worse.” “We need to increase the power of prediction and improve people’s ability to act.”
Early warning systems can monitor the real-time atmosphere at sea and on ground in order to predict upcoming weather events. This is true for cities, rural areas, coastal regions, deserts, and polar locations.
Because of the potential for deadly disasters like heat waves, floods and forest fires that could result from climate change, it is imperative to expand their use.
According to a World Meteorological Organization report, disaster statistics for the past 50 years have shown that 115 people died and $202 million were lost each day.
Many governments, the U.N. and its partners are working together to achieve an increasingly difficult goal of limiting global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degree Fahrenheit).
Guterres instructed WMO, U.N.’s weather agency, to develop an “action plan” on the early warning system for the next U.N. Climate Conference, which is set to be held in Egypt in November.
The U.N. stated that WMO will continue to develop some of its programs, including a multihazard alert system for disasters such as flooding, tropical cyclones and coastal inundation.
