Your Excellency John Kerry,
Your Excellency Ahmed Naseem,
Your Excellency Katharina Stasch,
Mr Adnan Amin,
Dr Vanessa Kerry,
Dr Omnia el Omrani,
Dr Mark Jacobs,
Mr Michel Demaré,
Excellencies, dear colleagues and friends,
In 2019 I had the opportunity to visit several nations in the Pacific, where climate change is stealing homes, and stealing hope.
In Tuvalu, I met a young boy called Falou, who told me that he had been discussing with his friends what they would do if Tuvalu sinks.
Some said they would leave, and some had decided that they would sink with Tuvalu.
Those words disturbed and saddened me, because a child of that age should be having fun with his friends, not worrying about whether he will still have a home when he grows up.
But the most pressing reasons for urgent climate action are the impacts not in the future, but right now, on health.
The climate crisis is a health crisis, fuelling outbreaks, contributing to higher rates of noncommunicable diseases, and threatening to overwhelm our health workforce and health infrastructure.
When I took office for my second term, I identified climate change as a priority for WHO’s in work to support countries in building healthier societies.
WHO has identified key actions to mitigate and build resilience to the climate crisis:
First, to promote actions that both reduce carbon emissions and improve health;
Second, to build better, more climate-resilient and environmentally sustainable health systems;
And third, to protect health from the wide range of impacts of climate change.
We need renewable energy in healthcare facilities; dedicated funding to the health sector for climate resilience; and increased use of reliable, cheap and green electricity.
At COP26 in Glasgow, we worked with the UK Government to launch the first health and climate initiative under a UNFCCC Presidency.
65 countries have now committed to work towards more climate resilient, and low - carbon health systems.
And with the UK and the Egyptian COP27 Presidency, we launched the Alliance for Transformative Action on Climate and Health.
I am pleased that the United Arab Emirates, as President of COP28, will raise the profile of health even further – with the first dedicated health day, and the first Health and Climate Ministerial meeting to take place at a COP.
I urge the health community – from Ministers of Health to civil society, international organizations to frontline health workers – not to leave climate change as somebody else’s problem. This is our mission too.
I thank you.