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    Health and climate Tackling climate change – protecting health

    The climate crisis is the biggest global threat to human health. Estimates are that climate change could contribute to driving up to 132 million people into extreme poverty by 2030 – in many cases because of links to health issues. Germany is lobbying for policies to focus more on the climate and health nexus, with cross-sectoral strategies being developed, in order to protect human health worldwide.

    High temperatures, extreme weather events and increasing air pollution – many consequences of climate change have a negative impact on health. Respiratory and cardiovascular diseases and infectious diseases such as malaria and cholera are increasing. The spread of organisms that transmit diseases (for example ticks) is also causing an increase in infections. Crop failures cause food crises which then lead to poverty, inequality, conflicts, displacement and migration, all of which can take a toll on people’s health. In addition, mental stress is growing/increasing / people are experiencing more mental stress, for example post-traumatic stress disorders in the wake of natural disasters.

    The World Bank expects as many as 21 million additional deaths by 2050 linked to five health risks that are exacerbated by climate change: heat, health conditions associated with malnutrition, diarrhoeal diseases, malaria and dengue. This concerns vulnerable groups in particular, such as elderly people, people with pre-existing conditions and people who are especially vulnerable to climatic changes. African and South-Asian countries where health and care systems are poorly developed are likely to be particularly affected/hard hit. The risk from these five conditions is also higher for women, especially during pregnancy, and for children under the age of five.

    German activities

    Graphic representation of the One Health approach: One Health is at the centre and there are interdependencies between human health, animal health and a healthy natural environment.

    One Health

    The Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) is supporting the efforts of its partner countries to achieve the 2030 Agenda and its far-reaching goals on climate action, biodiversity and health. The structural transition to a climate-neutral, resilient and socially just economic and social system (Just Transition) and interventions to strengthen health systems and pandemic prevention are at the centre of Germany’s development activities.

    The One Health approach is being followed by the BMZ in order to address the challenges that arise in areas where climate change and health overlap. The focus of this approach is on the linkages between the health of people, animals and ecosystems. This results in solutions that address the root causes of health problems and not just the symptoms.

    Bilateral cooperation

    In its bilateral cooperation with its partner countries, the BMZ aims to not only expand health systems but to make them more resilient so that they can successfully withstand current and future impacts of climate change. This involves the BMZ carrying out analyses to identify ways to integrate health and climate adaptation. Best practices and lessons learned from practical development cooperation are included in the BMZ's strategies and guidelines. Governments and administrations in partner countries are mainly supported by the BMZ through capacity building.

    In Togo, for instance, the BMZ is providing assistance via GIZ to help develop a sectoral climate strategy and risk analysis, with the aim of making Togo’s health system better able to deal with the health-related consequences of climate change. Other countries are receiving support for collecting and analysing climate-related, environmental and health-related data with a view to establishing early warning systems, identifying scope for action and funding opportunities, and coordinating the actors involved, for example.

    Multilateral cooperation

    The BMZ is also advocating for the integration of health topics in climate policy at the international level, for instance under the umbrella of the United Nations and in the G7 and G20 context.

    Germany participated, for example, in a core group at the 2023 climate conference in Dubai (COP28) to draft a declaration on climate and health (COP28 UAE Declaration on Climate and Health). This includes a commitment to maximising the health gains from mitigation and adaptation measures. In May 2024, the process was continued at the 77th World Health Assembly.

    Coordinated funding is an important factor. The BMZ is lobbying to get health-related multilateral organisations, such as the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, to take climate change into account in their investments in health systems from the start. Meanwhile, funding instruments in the climate sector, such as the Green Climate Fund and the Global Financing Facility (GFF) should ensure that their climate finance generates health gains in the country concerned. Cooperation arrangements have been agreed between health and climate funds so that the funding of interventions will create synergies.

    Partnership-based approach

    With a view to politically anchoring the climate and health nexus, the Federal Development Ministry is pursuing a partnership-based approach, working closely with like-minded countries, the European Union and civil society organisations. At the national level, the BMZ coordinates its work with other ministries and supports, in particular, the implementation of the German government’s Strategy on Climate Foreign Policy.

    In order to further expand and deepen global cooperation, Germany is actively engaged in the Alliance for Transformative Action on Climate and Health (ATACH), which is hosted by the WHO. The platform serves to promote the exchange of knowledge and is meant to support its member countries in their efforts to mobilise funding for implementing their climate and health strategies.