The horrors of heat

According to some media reports, rising temperatures will cost poor countries tens of billions of dollars annually as they are less able to keep their workers cool. Researchers have highlighted that labourers in the agricultural, mining, oil and gas, and manufacturing sectors will be worst affected by rising temperatures. The rising heat will diminish workers’ physical capacity to perform various tasks. With lower labour capacity, productivity will decrease, which will have effects on the sectors with the highest amount of manual labour. This drop in productivity results in an annual loss of $78 billion a year in South East Asia, and nearly $10 billion in West Africa.

Rapid urbanisation in these emerging economies will also strain energy needs, and the demand for cooling – such as air-conditioning – will soar as temperatures rise, resulting in frequent power outages. In light of these concerns, there is a strong need to start thinking about what changes we can bring to tackle these challenges.

Khan Faraz

Peshawar