WMO: Climate change causes $ 202 m economic losses per day over 50 years

02 / 09 / 2021

By Marwa Nassar - -

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) said weather, climate and water extremes have over the past 50 years caused average $ 202 million economic losses per day.

Economic losses have increased sevenfold from the 1970s to the 2010s, going from an average of $49 million, to a whopping $383 million per day globally.

Storms, the most prevalent cause of damage, resulted in the largest economic losses around the globe.

Three of the costliest 10 disasters, all hurricanes that occurred in 2017, accounted for 35 percent of total economic disaster losses around the world from 1970 to 2019.

In the United States, Hurricane Harvey caused $96.9 billion in damage, Maria in the Caribbean 69.4 billion, and Irma $58.2 billion in Cape Verde.

Of the top 10 disasters, droughts proved to be the deadliest hazard during the period, causing 650,000 deaths, followed by storms that led to 577,232 deaths; floods, which took 58.700 lives; and extreme temperature events, during which 55,736 died.

There were more than 11,000 reported disasters attributed to these hazards globally, with just over two million deaths and $3.64 trillion in losses. More than 91 percent of the deaths occurred in developing countries.

But the news is far from all bad. Thanks to improved early warning systems and disaster management, the number of deaths decreased almost threefold between 1970 and 2019 – falling from 50,000 in the 1970s to less than 20,000 in the 2010s, the report explained.

“Economic losses are mounting as exposure increases. But, behind the stark statistics, lies a message of hope. Improved multi-hazard early warning systems have led to a significant reduction in mortality. Quite simply, we are better than ever before at saving lives”, said WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas.

Africa from 1970 to 2019:

Africa has recorded 1,695 disasters from 1970 to 2019, thus causing the loss of 731,747 lives and $5 billion in economic losses.The continent accounts for 15 percent of weather, climate, and water-related disasters; 35 percent of associated deaths and one percent of economic losses reported globally.

Although disasters associated with floods were the most prevalent, at 60 percent, droughts led to the highest number of deaths, accounting for 95 percent of all lives lost in the region, withmost occurring in Ethiopia, Mozambique and Sudan

Need for action:

Only half of WMO’s 193 member countries have multi-hazard early warning systems and severe gaps in weather and hydrological observing networks exist in Africa, some parts of Latin America and in Pacific and Caribbean island States, the report warns.

“More lives are being saved thanks to early warning systems, but it is also true that the number of people exposed to disaster risk is increasing due to population growth in hazard-exposed areas and the growing intensity and frequency of weather events. More international cooperation is needed to tackle the chronic problem of huge numbers of people being displaced each year by floods, storms and drought”, said Mami Mizutori, UN Special Representative and head of the Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR).

Ms. Mizutori called for a greater investment in comprehensive disaster risk management to ensure that climate change adaptation is integrated in national and local disaster risk reduction strategies.

The UNDRR chief warned that the failure to reduce disasters losses as set out in the 2015 Sendai Framework is putting at risk the ability of developing countries to eradicate poverty and to achieve other important Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The Atlas further recommends countries to review hazard exposure and vulnerability considering a changing climate to reflect that tropical cyclones may have different tracks, intensity and speed than in the past.

It also calls for the development of integrated and proactive policies on slow-onset disasters such as drought.