A global initiative launched by the UN Secretary-General to ensure that all countries are protected by early warning systems, by 2027, is being fast-tracked into action on the ground, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said on Tuesday.
Tropical cyclone Freddy, one of the longest-lasting systems in the southern hemisphere, slammed into Mozambique on Friday, as UN agencies helped residents with early action.
Caribbean and UN leaders were on hand for the first regional launch of a plan to ensure that every person on the planet is protected by early warning systems by 2027, held in Bridgetown, Barbados on Tuesday.
With climate-related disasters displacing more people than conflict, UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Monday unveiled the details of his plan to ensure everyone on the planet is protected by early warning systems within the next five years.
The launch of an early warning system in Tuvalu will better inform residents of the Pacific island nation about oncoming cyclones and other disasters, according to a senior UN official in the region.
It is the first such system for the Pacific and can be replicated in other nations there, said Bakhodir Burkhanov, head of the UN Development Programme (UNDP) office for the region.