Pregnancy and childbirth have become a new and potentially deadly front in the climate crisis as extreme heat events intensify, UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell warned on Monday.
Stiell was speaking on the opening day of the Pre-COP31 meeting taking place in Fiji during an event organised by Wellcome, the international foundation that funds health-related research and programmes. The event focused on protecting pregnant women and newborns from the impacts of global warming.
The UN official presented new findings from research commissioned by Wellcome involving 1,000 healthcare professionals specialising in maternal health across Australia, Brazil, India, the United Kingdom and Zimbabwe.
Rising health risks
According to the survey:
- 73% of respondents said heat-related cases or complications had increased over the past five years.
- 81% expressed concern about the growing risks to the health of mothers, foetuses and newborns.
- 98% said they had treated a pregnant woman whose health had been affected by extreme heat.
- 99% said they had treated an infant affected by extreme heat.
The data presented also showed that every 1°C increase in temperature is associated with:
- a 5% increase in premature births
- a 7% increase in gestational diabetes
Vulnerable groups most exposed
Stiell stressed that the risks are not shared equally among all families.
People living in poor housing conditions, working outdoors, travelling long distances to reach healthcare facilities or relying on clinics without water, electricity or cooling systems have fewer means of protecting themselves from extreme temperatures.
“Keeping cool is not an option when there is nowhere cool to go,” he said.
He called for maternal and newborn health to be incorporated into national climate adaptation plans and heatwave response strategies.
Focus on COP31
The address took place during Pre-COP31, a preparatory gathering ahead of the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP31), which is scheduled to take place in Antalya, Türkiye, from 9 to 20 November.
Fiji, Tuvalu and Australia are jointly hosting the event from 5 to 8 October, with the aim of highlighting the priorities of small Pacific island states.
These countries are among those most exposed to rising sea levels and increasingly severe weather events.
Climate finance and resilience
Fijian Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka called on Sunday for climate finance to reach the communities that need it “now” and described such support as “an act of justice, not charity”.
Fiji is also seeking commitments of approximately $500 million (€442 million) to strengthen resilience across Pacific nations.
The region is further calling for:
- preservation of the 1.5°C global warming target
- increased adaptation financing
- stronger support for addressing loss and damage
- greater focus on oceans within climate negotiations
In the same context, Stiell called for increased funding for climate adaptation and concluded:
“A healthy start in life for a newborn should never depend on a family's ability to escape the heat.”
Source: CNA
