Guterres Calls for Global Disaster Warning Systems

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged countries to implement disaster warning systems to protect against extreme weather impacts of global warming. Highlighting the urgency, he emphasized early warning systems' potential to prevent significant damage and called for annual climate finance to help developing countries.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stressed the need for countries to adopt disaster warning systems in response to extreme weather threats posed by global warming. Speaking at the U.N. World Meteorological Organization conference in Geneva, Guterres highlighted the alarming statistics of recent years' temperatures and ocean heat records.

Guterres emphasized the importance of Early Warning Systems, stating they can significantly mitigate damage by providing pre-hazard alerts. He noted that over 60% of countries have begun implementing these systems since his 2022 initiative.

Pointing to the human cost of climate-related disasters, Guterres urged an agreement at the upcoming U.N. Climate Conference in Brazil for $1.3 trillion in annual climate finance for developing nations to both fund warning systems and curb emissions.

(With inputs from agencies.)