WHO launches 5-year plan to protect Asia-Pacific from climate disasters

With Asia and the Pacific among the most climate-vulnerable regions, WHO's new five-year plan aims to build resilient health systems and protect millions from rising environmental and health risks

  As rising seas erode coastlines and heatwaves intensify, Asia and the Pacific face escalating health risks from climate change. In response, the World Health Organization (WHO) has unveiled a five-year action blueprint (2025–2030) to help countries strengthen health systems, reduce emissions, and prepare for climate impacts.

A region in climate spotlight

 

The WHO notes that the Western Pacific Region, home to over 2.2 billion people, is among the most climate-vulnerable in the world. From rising sea levels threatening island nations, to worsening air pollution and extreme heat in rapidly growing cities, the climate crisis is already claiming lives and livelihoods.

 

Each year, around 3.5 million people in this region die from preventable environmental causes including unsafe water, polluted air and exposure to extreme weather. Outdoor air-pollution alone takes one life every 14 seconds in the region.

 

Globally, WHO estimates climate change could cause an additional 250 000 deaths every year between 2030 and 2050 from malnutrition, malaria, heat stress and other causes, and much of that burden will fall on the Asia-Pacific region.

 

“Climate change is no longer a distant threat – it is a health emergency unfolding in real time,” said Dr Saia Ma’u Piukala, WHO regional director for the Western Pacific. “Our new strategy, through our centre of excellence on climate and health, is an urgent call to action to protect our people and our planet, ensuring a healthier, fairer and more sustainable future for all."

What's in the WHO blueprint?

 

The blueprint, officially the Strategic Plan for the WHO Asia-Pacific Centre for Environment and Health (ACE) for 2025-2030, identifies three key priorities:

 

1. Climate-resilient and sustainable health systems – Helping countries adapt to climate impacts while reducing emissions from the health sector.

 

2. Healthy urban and island systems – Promoting cleaner air, safer water and more sustainable urban development.

 

3. Sustainable food systems for people and planet – Advancing nutrition and climate goals through resilient, low-emission food systems.

 

The strategy was developed by the WHO Asia-Pacific Centre for Environment and Health in the Western Pacific Region (ACE), based in Seoul and hosted by the Republic of Korea.

Building resilience, inspiring regional action

 

The strategy is being launched in the Pacific island nation of Fiji, symbolic of the threats faced by such nations as sea-levels rise and whole communities are at risk.

 

Dr Sandro Demaio, director of the ACE Centre, said, “The Western Pacific truly holds the key to global progress on climate and health - what happens here will shape the health of generations to come.”

 

The strategy will guide regional efforts to:

• Scale up implementation of climate-health action
• Foster innovation to deal with the impact of climate change
• Strengthen cooperation among governments, researchers and partners across the Asia-Pacific region

 

“This strategy harnesses the Region’s extraordinary diversity, innovation and leadership to turn ambition into action,” added Dr Demaio.

Why it matters for the region

•  The region is one of the most climate-sensitive anywhere with large populations, growing cities, many island and low-lying states.
• Health systems here are already facing multiple threats from environmental change (air pollution, flooding, water-borne disease, heat stress).
• A regional strategy means action will be tailored to local realities, from Pacific islands to mega-cities, rather than a one-size-fits-all global approach.
• Building sustainable health systems and food systems can bring other benefits like healthier populations and fewer emissions

Moving from ambition to action

National governments will now need to:

• Align health and climate policies with the WHO framework.
• Establish tracking mechanisms to measure adaptation progress.
• Mobilise finance and innovation to help hospitals, cities, and island states transition to low-emission, climate-safe systems.
• Build cross-sector partnerships between health, environment, and food systems.

 

The WHO’s regional plan signals a decisive shift from warnings to action, recognising that protecting health is at the heart of climate resilience.