The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) released the Executive Action Plan of Early Warnings for All during a roundtable meeting at the 27th Conference of Parties (COP27) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
Key points
- UN Secretary-General António Guterres announced the plan on November 7 during a meeting of government and UN leaders, financing agencies, ‘Big Tech’ companies and the private sector.
- The Executive Action Plan for the Early Warnings for All initiative, calls for initial new targeted investments of $ 3.1 billion between 2023 and 2027, equivalent to a cost of just 50 cents (approximately Rs 41) per person per year.
- The $3.1 billion figure represents a small fraction – roughly six percent – of the requested $50 billion in adaptation financing, according to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
- The UN agency and partners drew up the plan, which was supported by a joint statement signed by 50 countries.
- WMO said the need for early warning systems is urgent as the number of recorded disasters has increased five-fold, driven in part by human-induced climate change and more extreme weather.
- Even though this trend is expected to continue, half of all countries do not have early warning systems in place, and even fewer have regulatory frameworks to link early warnings to emergency plans.
- Coverage is worst for developing countries on the front lines of climate change, namely the world’s Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Small Island Developing States (SIDS). When it comes to climate change adaptation, early warning systems are widely regarded as the “low-hanging fruit”, said WMO, because they are a relatively cheap and effective way of protecting people and assets.
- Furthermore, the Global Commission on Adaptation found that spending just $800 million on these systems in developing countries would avoid losses of $3 billion to $16 billion per year.
Four pillars
The essential ingredients to achieve Early Warnings for All include: deeper understanding of risk across all time scales; stronger national meteorological and hydrological services, disaster risk management agencies and emergency preparedness measures; accessible financial and technical support and an anticipatory humanitarian sector.
The estimated new targeted investments of US$ 3.1 Billion over the five years would be used to advance the four key Multi-Hazard Early Warning System (MHEWS) pillars:
- Disaster risk knowledge (US$374 million) – systematically collect data and undertake risk assessments on hazards and vulnerabilities
- Observations and Forecasting (US$1.18 billion) – develop hazard monitoring and early warning services
- Preparedness and response ($1 billion) – build national and community response capabilities
- Dissemination and communication (US$ 550 million) – communicate risk information so it reaches all those who need it, and is understandable and usable
