UN: Early Warning Systems Would Protect Everyone on Earth within 5 years

The UN has formulated an ambitious five-year deadline for countries to ensure that citizens worldwide are protected by early warning systems against extreme weather and climate change, the UN Secretary-General António Guterres announced on Wednesday, marking World Meteorological Day.

In a video message during a ceremony marking the day, the UN chief said that the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) would spearhead new action to ensure every person on Earth is protected by early warning systems within five years.

The UN official revealed that the UN weather agency will lead the effort and present an action plan in November at this year’s UN climate conference (COP 27) in Egypt.

Guterres noted that climate change has become a more stark reality in all parts of the world, leading to increasingly extreme weather, including intense heatwaves, droughts, and forest fires.

He also explained that increasing moisture in the atmosphere is leading to extreme rainfall and deadly flooding, while ocean warming is fuelling more powerful tropical storms and rising sea levels.

The Secretary-General pointed out: “We must boost the power of prediction for everyone and build their capacity to act."

“On this World Meteorological Day, let us recognize the value of early warnings and early action as critical tools to reduce disaster risk and support climate adaptation.”

The most recent study of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) details the ongoing suffering, as “each increment of global heating” further increases the “frequency and intensity of extreme weather events,” Mr. Guterres warned.

He said it was unacceptable that one-third of the world’s people – living mainly in the least developed countries (LDCs) and small island developing States (SIDS) – are still not covered by early warning systems.

“In Africa, it is even worse: 60 percent of people lack coverage.”

In a bid to achieve universal coverage of early warning services, WMO will seek to close observation gaps and expand countries' capacities for issuing warnings while simultaneously improving their ability to respond in a people-centered, inclusive, and accessible manner.

The new plan aims to build on existing WMO activities and partnerships, including with those key agencies, countries, and groups already active in the field.

This will require inputs from actors throughout the entire early action value chain to close early warning gaps

According to a 2021 WMO disaster statistics report, a climate or water-related disaster has occurred on average each day, taking the lives of 115 people and causing daily losses of $202 million.

Even though the number of recorded disasters has increased by fivefold over that period, improved early warnings and disaster management have saved the lives of many.

On his part, WMO chief Petteri Taalas said, “The growing number of disasters due to climate change is endangering the implementation of a large number of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)."

Noting that increasing investment in climate early warning services and related infrastructure is growing ever more important to climate adaptation, he described it as “one of the highest returns” for a modest stake.

“There is a need to invest $1.5 billion during the coming five years to improve the quality of the services and related infrastructure, especially in the LDC and SIDS countries,” he concluded.