SRSG Remarks - Launch of WMO’s Report on the State of the Climate in Latin America and the Caribbean 2020

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Launch of WMO’s Report on the State of the Climate in Latin America and the Caribbean 2020

Remarks by SRSG Mizutori

17 August 2021

Prof. Petteri Taalas, Secretary General, WMO,

Hon. Pearnel Charles Jr., Minister of Housing, Urban Renewal, Environment and Climate Change, Jamaica,

Ms. Alicia Barcena, Executive Secretary, Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC)),

Excellencies,

Colleagues and friends.

I’m delighted to join you today as you launch the Report on the State of the Climate in Latin America and the Caribbean: this is a crucial report at a critical time.

We know that countries in the Americas and the Caribbean face disproportional socio-economic and financial risks from intensifying disaster impacts, many of which are undeniably linked to the climate emergency.

Extreme multi-hazard disasters are no longer a matter of ‘if’, but rather ‘when’ and how many.

Nothing undermines sustainable development like disasters. If we want to have any chance of achieving the goals set in various global frameworks, such as the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the Paris Agreement and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, we have to look risk in the face: understanding that it is complex and systemic. But we must not be deterred by this. Hazards do not have to become disasters. Risk is reducible. It is preventable and it can be managed.  

Understanding the risk that surrounds us: this is the first goal of the Sendai Framework, and it is one of UNDRR’s main areas of focus. This is why, recently, we launched our first Regional Risk Assessment Report, which looks at better understanding risk in the region of the Americas and the Caribbean.

In line with WMO’s report launched today, the Regional Risk Assessment Report underscores how climate change is exacerbating threats in this region. We are warned of rising temperatures and heatwaves, particularly in urban areas. On the other hand, uncertain rainy seasons affect disproportionately, small farmers, due to increasing exposure to droughts, and leading to food insecurity. Furthermore, we have also observed in recent years, frequent cyclone occurrences in the Caribbean and Pacific basins, and small island states are facing rising sea levels.

Of course, all of this is overlaid with COVID-19.

These events can wreak major havoc if we are not properly prepared. The after effect exacerbates critical socio-economic conditions in countries which are already dealing with high levels of social vulnerability and great exposure. For this reason, one of the seven global goals of the Sendai Framework, calls national and local governments to develop evidence-based, multi-sectoral and multi-stakeholder disaster risk reduction strategies and plans.

However, designing these strategies to avert, reduce and manage risks, losses and damages is very challenging when the appropriate information, data and capacities are not available. It is crucial to draw on the work of experts, decision-makers and practitioners from the global, regional and national levels to promote the importance of, and how best to invest in improving climate and disaster risk governance and risk management.

UNDRR and WMO are committed to this.

This “first WMO Report on the State of the Regional Climate for Latin America and the Caribbean 2020” presents critical information and analysis of past events, present realities, and looks ahead at future scenarios to better understand the challenges and opportunities to reduce climate-related risks and to build resilience.

The report will be a valuable contribution to the ongoing work of the Issue Based Coalition on Climate Change and Resilience, in Latin America and the Caribbean. The report will help the 15 UN agencies that make up the Coalition to think through what data is telling us about underlying causes of climate risks, and how to identify long-term sustainable solutions. 

Understanding risk must be combined with accelerated progress in the development and use of remote sensing, early warning systems and better availability of meteorological and climatic data for impact-based forecasts. And here, the interaction and collaboration between the National Disaster Management Agencies and the National Meteorological and Hydrological Services on the ground in the countries, becomes absolutely critical to ensure a consistent assessment of climate risks and enable timely decision making. 

One of the critical lessons that we have learned from COVID-19 is the need to improve multi-sectorial collaboration and coordination to generate scientific evidence, that in turn, informs decision-making.

The role of the science and technology community is particularly relevant to build the needed evidence, to strengthen data collection mechanisms, to improve loss & damage databases, to enhance multi-hazard early warning systems, and to guide governments to clearly integrate disaster risk information into their development planning.

To this end, knowledge-based partnerships and initiatives across the UN system, between the public sector, science and technology sector, the private sector, academia, as well as civil society and community-based organizations, are crucial to support coherent risk informed development based on innovative solutions.

Accordingly, WMO’s “State of the Climate in Latin America and the Caribbean” report is an impressive and vital tool in our battle for a safer, more resilient world, and I am delighted to be part of its launch.

Thank you very much.