In 2022, KwaZulu-Natal experienced the most devastating floods on record, killing 459 people.Photo: Delwyn Verasamy
BClimate change could cause an additional 14.5 million deaths and $12.5 trillion in health-related economic losses worldwide by 2050, according to a new report from the World Economic Forum.
The report, released on the second day of the Forum's annual meeting in Davos, aims to quantify the impacts of climate change, both in terms of health impacts and economic costs to health systems. There is. To do so, the report's authors analyzed six major climate event categories as important drivers of adverse health outcomes: floods, droughts, heat waves, tropical storms, wildfires, and sea level rise.
The report found that floods pose the highest acute risk of death from climate change, with 8.5 million people predicted to die by 2050.
South Africans know all too well how devastating extreme weather events can be. KwaZulu-Natal was again hit by floods last weekend, killing 11 people and destroying infrastructure.
In 2022, the state experienced its most devastating flood on record, killing 459 people. More than 4,000 homes were destroyed, and infrastructure and business losses were estimated at $2 billion.
A World Economic Forum report on Tuesday said climate change would have further indirect effects on health, causing a “catastrophic increase” in several climate-sensitive diseases.
The report says that by 2050, an additional 500 million people are at risk of exposure to vector-borne diseases such as malaria, dengue and Zika. This is because rising temperatures increase both the breeding period and geographic range of mosquito colonies, spreading these diseases to Europe and the United States.
Climate change also threatens to widen regional socio-economic disparities, putting Africa and South Asia at higher risk of adverse health outcomes.
According to the report, Africa will bear the brunt of climate change-related health losses, with a staggering 1.29 billion disability-adjusted life years (not just the healthy years, but the The measure of time lost due to early death will be maintained. By 2050, lives lost due to disability and poor health).
It will also cost the continent more than $2 trillion in economic costs due to lost productivity and healthcare costs.