The pressing health risk that climate change poses calls for countries to launch an adequate response. As governments prepare to protect the health of their people from the impacts of climate change, only a quarter of those countries surveyed by the World Health Organization (WHO) have been able to implement their national health and climate change strategies fully.
According to the findings of the 2021 WHO health and climate change global survey report, lack of funding is the reason.
The WHO sent the survey to the national health authorities, who in collaboration with other relevant ministries and stakeholders, provide updated information on critical areas, including leadership and governance, national vulnerability and adaptation assessments, emergency preparedness, disease surveillance, adaptation and resilience measures, climate and health finance, and mitigation in the health sector.
The WHO survey highlights how many countries are left unsupported and unprepared to deal with the health impacts of climate change. “We are here at COP 26 to urge the world to better support countries in need, and to ensure that together we do a better job of protecting people from the biggest threat to human health we face today,” said Dr. Maria Neira, WHO Director of Environment, Climate Change and Health (Many countries are, 2021).
“Countries’ inability to protect health from climate change is most harmful to their most disadvantaged groups, including ethnic minorities, poor communities, migrants and displaced people, older people and many women and children” (Many countries are, 2021).
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