A new report from the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) published on October 13, warns that half of the world’s countries are not protected by multi-hazard early warning systems.
Key points
- The report, Global Status of Multi-Hazard Early Warning Systems – Target G, is based on new data that shows that countries with limited early warning coverage have mortality rates during disasters, that are eight times higher than countries with substantial to comprehensive coverage.
- This UNDRR-WMO joint report assesses the current global status of multi-hazard early warning systems (MHEWS) against Target G of the Sendai Framework, collating data officially reported by the Member States with data collected through a WMO survey.
- The report shows that LDCs, SIDS, and countries in Africa, require the most investment to increase early warning coverage and adequately protect themselves against disasters.
- In the first seven years of Sendai Framework implementation (2015-2021), a total of around 300,000 disaster-related deaths (including missing persons) were reported by 135 countries (Target A), excluding COVID-19-related mortality.
- Nonetheless, in the longer term, the average annual number of dead and missing persons in the event of disaster per 100,000 people has fallen from 1.77 during 2005 to 2014 to 0.84 during 2012 to 2021.
Sendai Framework, through its Target G
- The Sendai Framework, through its Target G, aims “to substantially increase the availability of and access to multi-hazard early warning systems and disaster risk information and assessments to the people by 2030”.
- UNDRR has been mandated to monitor the implementation of the Sendai Framework, which it does through the online Sendai Framework Monitor (SFM), also contributing to the monitoring of selected targets of SDGs 1, 11 and 13.
- Of the countries reporting on this indicator on SFM, only 56 per cent reported on the availability of multihazard monitoring and forecasting systems.
Four interrelated key elements of MHEWS:
- Disaster risk knowledge based on the systematic collection of data and disaster risk assessments,
- Detection, monitoring, analysis and forecasting of the hazards and possible consequences,
- Dissemination and communication, by an official source, of authoritative, timely, accurate and actionable warnings and associated information on likelihood and impact; and
- Preparedness at all levels to respond to the warnings received.
TARGETS OF THE SENDAI FRAMEWORK
- (a) Substantially reduce global disaster mortality by 2030, aiming to lower the average per 100,000 global mortality rate in the decade 2020-2030 compared to the period 2005-2015;
- (b) Substantially reduce the number of affected people globally by 2030, aiming to lower the average global figure per 100,000 in the decade 2020-2030 compared to the period 2005-2015.
- (c) Reduce direct disaster economic loss in relation to global gross domestic product (GDP) by 2030;
- (d) Substantially reduce disaster damage to critical infrastructure and disruption of basic services, among them health and educational facilities, including through developing their resilience by 2030;
- (e) Substantially increase the number of countries with national and local disaster risk reduction strategies by 2020;
- (f) Substantially enhance international cooperation to developing countries through adequate and sustainable support to complement their national actions for implementation of the present Framework by 2030;
- (g) Substantially increase the availability of and access to multi-hazard early warning systems and disaster risk information and assessments to people by 2030.
