Four United Nations agencies have launched the first-ever set of priority indicators to help countries track how extreme heat harms pregnant women, newborns and children, and to act before heatwaves turn deadly.
Source: UN News
The World Health Organization (WHO), the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), UNICEF and the UN reproductive health agency UNFPA launched the new framework on Wednesday. It is designed to strengthen preparedness, improve monitoring and accelerate response, the agencies said.
The danger starts before birth. Research cited by WHO shows exposure to extreme heat can raise the risk of preterm birth by 26 per cent, and in 2024 children under one year old endured 389 per cent more heatwave days than in the 1986–2005 period, according to reporting of the WHO presentation.
Source: Demócrata (WHO presentation)
What countries are being asked to track
The framework recommends that countries monitor preterm births, stillbirths, low birthweight, pregnancy hypertension, child deaths and health-facility visits during extreme heat. Monitoring school attendance can also reveal how heat is disrupting children's lives, the agencies said.
"Our health systems need the data to recognise this reality and take action," said Bruce Gordon, interim director of environment, climate change, One Health and migration at WHO. That means everything from protecting people during heatwaves to building climate risk into everyday health services, he added.
South Asia faces some of the world's most intense summer heat, and Punjab's pregnant women, infants and outdoor-working families are among the most exposed. A common global yardstick means heat harm will be counted — and warned about — instead of passing unrecorded.
The agencies said the new information can help health authorities prepare facilities for rising demand, strengthen warnings to pregnant women and families, identify the communities at greatest risk and improve planning.