Climate Change Forum at the World Government Summit

Photo: Reem Mohammed / The National

Climate change is now considered to be a primary driver and intensifier of humanitarian crises, as evidenced in the last 12 months alone with unprecedented droughts in the Horn of Africa and Sahel and catastrophic hurricanes in the Caribbean. Weather-related events accounted for 23.5 million displaced persons in 2016, and the majority of refugees originate and live in “climate change hotspots.” Moreover, the humanitarian impacts of climate change are likely to worsen in coming years, and women and children (already 5-14 times more likely to die in a disaster) will bear the brunt.

At the 2018 World Government Summit, world leaders and global thinkers came together to identify the highest-priority, near-term solutions to address the growing humanitarian dimension of climate change, as well as its disproportionate impact on women and children. The aim was to agree on a limited number of solutions for collective action and/or internal reforms that can be undertaken within the subsequent 12 months.

IRENA Director-General Adnan Z. Amin moderated two sessions at the forum: In Focus: Women and Youth; and Climate Change: A Threat Multiplier.