UN: 900 Million Poor People at Risk from Climate Disasters

Nearly 900 million of the world’s poorest people about 80% of the global poor are directly exposed to climate-related hazards intensified by global warming, according to a new United Nations report released on Friday.

These populations are bearing a “double and deeply unequal burden,” said Haoliang Xu, acting administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), in a statement to AFP.

“While no one is immune to the increasing impacts of climate change such as droughts, floods, heatwaves, and air pollution the poorest communities are suffering the most,” Xu said. He urged global leaders to treat climate action as a vital part of the fight against poverty, ahead of COP30, the UN climate summit scheduled for November in Brazil.

The warning comes alongside an annual report co-published by the UNDP and the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative. The study shows that 1.1 billion people in 109 countries approximately 18% of a population of 6.3 billion live in acute multidimensional poverty, measured by indicators such as child mortality, inadequate housing, limited access to education, electricity, clean water, and sanitation. Notably, half of this group are children.

The report illustrates the grim reality of multidimensional poverty through real-life examples, including Ricardo, a day labourer from Bolivia’s Guarani Indigenous community near Santa Cruz de la Sierra. Ricardo lives in a crowded single-family home with 18 relatives, including three children, and lacks access to basic services like schooling, clean cooking, and sanitation.

“This household’s daily life exemplifies the interconnected challenges of poverty,” the report stated.

Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia Face the Greatest Risks

The report identifies sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia as the two regions most affected by multidimensional poverty and also among the most vulnerable to climate change impacts.

Researchers analysed four major environmental risks: extreme heat, floods, drought, and air pollution. Poor households are disproportionately affected due to their dependence on sectors like agriculture and informal work, which are highly sensitive to climate shocks.

“When environmental hazards occur repeatedly or simultaneously, they worsen existing poverty,” the report said.

Key findings include:

• 608 million poor people face extreme heat
• 577 million are affected by air pollution
• 465 million live in flood-prone areas
• 207 million suffer from drought conditions
• 651 million are exposed to at least two of these risks
• 309 million experience three or more
• 11 million poor individuals are exposed to all four risks within a single year

“These overlapping threats highlight that climate vulnerability and poverty are globally intertwined,” the report warned.

Climate Change Threatens Development Gains

The intensification of extreme weather events threatens to undermine decades of progress in development and poverty reduction. South Asia, for instance, has made notable advances in lowering poverty rates, yet 99.1% of its poor population remains exposed to at least one climate hazard.

The report urges countries in vulnerable regions to adopt a new development path that integrates aggressive poverty reduction efforts with innovative climate strategies.

With the planet continuing to warm, the situation is expected to deteriorate further especially for the world’s poorest nations, which face the highest exposure and have the least capacity to adapt.

“Responding to these layered risks means prioritising both people and the planet,” the report concludes. “What’s urgently needed now is a shift from acknowledgment to rapid, coordinated action.”

AFP