The UN Secretary General presented the Action Plan for the Early Warnings for All initiative, which should be completed between 2023 and 2027 and whose initial investments amount to some 3.1 billion dollars, a minimal amount compared to the benefits that will be will derive from the initiative, the World Meteorological Organization said on Monday, November 7. “A 24-hour warning of an imminent hazardous event can reduce subsequent damage by 30%,” said Petteri Taalas, head of the WMO.
The announcement by the Secretary General of the United Nations Organization (UN), António Guterres, came during a meeting of government leaders and UN organizations, financial organizations, large technology companies and the private sector during the Summit of World Leaders in the UN Conference on climate change, COP27, in Egypt.
The World Meteorological Organization and his partners drafted the plan that was supported by a joint statement signed by 50 countries.
The project seeks to protect all of the earth’s inhabitants by installing systems that issue early warnings of extreme and dangerous weather events.
“We must invest in equal parts in adaptation and resilience. That includes having the information you need to anticipate storms, heat waves, floods and droughts. To this end, I call for early warning systems for all inhabitants of the earth within five years, with the priority of supporting the most vulnerable first,” said Guterres.
A low investment can avoid millionaire losses
The initial investment forms a small part of the $50 billion requested to fund adaptation activities and will go towards building disaster risk awareness, observations and predictions, preparedness and response activities, as well as communication of early warnings.
WMO Secretary-General Professor Petteri Taalas stressed that “early warnings save lives and provide huge economic benefits. A 24-hour notice of an imminent hazardous event can reduce subsequent damage by 30%.”
The UN Global Commission on Adaptation concluded that investing $800 million in such systems in developing countries they would avoid annual losses of between 3 and 16 billion dollars.
According to the WMO, the essential elements to achieve Early Warning for All are:
- A deeper understanding of risk across all timescales
- Higher quality national meteorological and hydrological services
- Disaster Risk Management Agencies and Emergency Preparedness Measures
- Accessible financial and technical support
- A humanitarian sector capable of anticipation
- A people-centered approach that prioritizes community engagement
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Antonio Guterres: “Either we cooperate or we perish”
The General secretary of the United Nations is pronounced this Monday, November 7 by a historic pact between rich and developing countries to combine capabilities and guide the world towards reducing carbon emissions, transforming energy systems and avoiding climate catastrophe.
Opening the two-day Climate Implementation Summit held on the sidelines of COP27 in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, António Guterres posed a dilemma for the world.
«Humanity has to choose: cooperate or perish. It is a Climate Solidarity Pact or a Collective Suicide Pact », he told more than a hundred world leaders gathered for the first official plenary session of the UN Climate Change Conference.
The Pact would require all countries to make additional efforts to reduce carbon emissions, richer nations and international financial institutions to provide assistance to emerging economies, put end dependency on fossil fuels and the construction of coal plants, that sustainable energy be offered to all, and that countries come together to combine strategies and capacities for the benefit of humanity.
The head of the UN recalled that the planet is rapidly approaching turning points that can make it irreversible climate chaos. We are on a highway to climate hell with my foot on the accelerator»he warned.
The two largest economies, The United States and China have a particular responsibility to join forces to make this pact a reality. This is our only hope of meeting climate goals,” the UN chief emphasized.
Guterres said that the 8 billionth inhabitant of Earth will soon be born and that milestone puts into perspective what COP27 is all about.
“How will we respond when that baby is old enough to ask: What did you do for our world, and for our planet, when you had the chance?”
The special summit on climate will be held on Monday at the UN
He added that while the war in Ukraine and other conflicts have caused enormous bloodshed and violence and have had dramatic impacts around the world, the UN cannot accept that attention is diverted from climate change.
“It is the defining question of our time. It is the central challenge of our century. It is unacceptable, scandalous and counterproductive to leave it in the background»he underlined.
The secretary general explained that many of the current conflicts are linked to “increasing climate chaos.”
“The war in Ukraine has exposed the profound risks of our addiction to fossil fuels. Today’s urgent crises cannot be an excuse for relapse. If anything, they are a reason to give greater urgency to stronger action and effective accountability,” he stressed.
Extraordinary income taxes
Guterres returned to the request he had made earlier that the governments tax windfall and pandemic-driven profits from fossil fuels.
That money, he explained, would be redirected to people fighting rising food and energy prices, and to countries suffering loss and damage caused by the climate crisis.
“The deadly impacts of climate change are here and now. Loss and damage can no longer be swept under the rug. It’s a moral imperative. It is a fundamental issue of international solidarity and climate justice. Those who contributed least to the climate crisis are reaping the whirlwind sown by others,” he stressed, adding that during COP27 leaders must agree on a clear and time-bound roadmap that reflects the scale and urgency of the challenge.
António Guterres also called on advancing adaptation and building resilience in the face of future climatic disturbances, highlighting that 3.5 billion people live in countries that are highly vulnerable to climate impacts.
Expert projections show that adaptation needs will grow to more than 300,000 million dollars a year by 2030, calling on international banks and financial institutions to change their business model and do their part.
It’s time for solidarity
He added that it is time for international solidarity in all areas.
“A solidarity that respect human rights and ensure a safe space for environmental defenders and all actors in society to contribute to our climate response. Let us not forget that the war against nature is in itself a massive violation of human rights”, she pointed out.
Finally, he argued that the global climate struggle will be won or lost in this decade crucial and under the gaze of today’s world leaders.
“One thing is certain: those who give up are sure to lose. Then, let’s fight together and win. For the 8 billion members of our human family and for generations to come,” she warned.
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