In this article, we take a look at the top 20 countries most affected by global warming. You can skip our detailed analysis of the effects of global warming and go directly to the Top 5 Countries Most Affected by Global Warming.
Global Warming Effects
While global temperatures have been gradually increasing for centuries, an alarming pace of global warming has been observed by experts in recent decades. Earth’s temperature has been rising by 0.18℃ since 1981 and is expected to increase by 2-4℃ by 2100. The countries affected the most by global warming are experiencing frequent and intense natural disasters such as cyclones, floods, and droughts, and extreme weather events such as heat waves. Apart from the physical, environmental, and infrastructural losses, the financial cost of global warming is further weakening the economies of these countries. According to an estimate, the effects of climate-related disasters in Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh might lower the GDP of South Asia by 10-18%.
Unfortunately, the countries that are most affected by global warming make minimal contributions to the global emission of greenhouse gasses. On the contrary, most of the developed countries, which are resilient to increasing temperatures and associated disasters, have collectively produced 79% of carbon emissions historically. 73.2% of these carbon and greenhouse gas emissions come from the energy sector including electricity, heat, and transport, which have fuelled the development of these countries.
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has requested developed countries to assist the countries affected by global warming in building climate-resilient infrastructure with a collective amount of $100 billion annually. While these countries consistently fail to provide the target amount of Climate Funds every year, the developing countries will have to bear a cost of $300 billion for adapting to climate change by 2030.
Companies fighting global warming
While governments across the world are introducing policies to combat global warming, the private sector has also initiated green business practices to help reduce the impacts of climate change. Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) took the lead by shifting its entire electricity consumption to renewable energy in 2017. Now, Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) is planning to switch to carbon-free energy completely by 2030. To achieve this objective, Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) has bought projects generating 5.5 GW of renewable energy, which will prevent roughly 5 million tons of CO2 from being emitted every year.
HP Inc. (NYSE:HPQ) is another IT giant committed to the reversal of global warming. It is minimizing its use of single-use plastic by 75% and consumes more than 25,000 tons of recycled plastic in its products. HP Inc. (NYSE:HPQ) has also initiated a Sustainable Forests Collaborative with World Wildlife Fund (WWF) to help restore the Brazilian Atlantic Forest with a contribution of $11 million. Earlier, HP Inc. (NYSE:HPQ) achieved its target of zero deforestation for its paper-based products and packaging requirements.
Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) has also announced its plan to achieve net zero carbon emissions within the next three decades. Additionally, Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) has invested $11.5 billion in producing electric vehicles such as F-150 and Mustang Mach-E. In order to cut down its dependence on fossil fuel, Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) will completely shift its operations to renewable energy by 2035.
For our list of the top 20 countries that are most affected by global warming, we considered the countries that had faced the greatest economic losses and average annual fatalities due to global warming from 2000 onwards, and the countries that were most affected by heatwaves, cyclones, droughts, and floods caused by global warming. To calculate the Global Warming Impact Score for each country, we have averaged German Watch’s Global Climate Risk Index and INFORM Climate Change Risk Index and scored the countries based on the average, with countries worst-affected having higher scores.
Here are the top countries most affected by global warming:
20. Sri Lanka
Global Warming Impact Score: 60.9
Sri Lanka is experiencing one of the fastest increases in average annual temperatures across the world and is expected to face regular heat waves in the coming years. The increasing coastal erosion due to rising sea levels will reach an annual 4-11m by 2050, thus impacting 11.3 million people living along the coastline.
19. Fiji
Global Warming Impact Score: 61.02
As an island country in the South Pacific, Fiji is threatened by rising sea levels, coastal floods, and cyclones, that will directly impact 75% of the country’s population residing along the coastline. This will also damage the country’s major GDP-supporting sectors such as fisheries, tourism, and agriculture. To build resilience against natural disasters, the Fijian government has decided to erect more than 12 seawalls to protect at-risk communities along the country’s coast.
18. Uganda
Global Warming Impact Score: 63.7
Global warming has caused the Rwenzori glaciers of Uganda to melt at an alarming pace, with many experts expecting them to disappear before 2033. As a result, the country will not only lose a unique ecosystem, it will also be subject to devastating floods and landslides. Global warming has also increased the frequency of outbreaks of infectious diseases such as Ebola within the country by 63% compared to the previous decades.
17. Kenya
Global Warming Impact Score: 64.1
Kenya is situated in the Horn of Africa, which is suffering from its toughest drought in 40 years. The economic cost of this drought for Kenya amounted to $708 million in 2019. In response to the global warming and climate crisis faced by the country, the Kenyan government has decided to reduce its already low greenhouse gas emissions by a further 32% by the end of the decade.
16. Vietnam
Global Warming Impact Score: 65.1
The average annual temperature of Vietnam is increasing at twice the rate of global warming, with its highest-ever temperature being recently recorded at 44℃. While the country continues to warm up, it has announced the development of 19 gas fields along with Malaysia, which would produce more than 540 billion cubic meters of gas, thus also increasing its carbon emission. On the other hand, the G7 countries along with Norway and Denmark have provided Vietnam with $15.5 billion to help switch to renewable energy.
15. South Sudan
Global Warming Impact Score: 66.3
South Sudan is one of the worst-affected countries by global warming. The average temperatures in South Sudan are increasing at a pace 2.5 times greater than the global rise in temperature, which has driven the country to drought and 64% of its population to face acute hunger. To add to the crisis, South Sudan has suffered from heavy floods for 4 consecutive years, with 900,000 people being affected in 2022 alone.
14. Zimbabwe
Global Warming Impact Score: 68.07
This landlocked country in the south of Africa is set to experience a 3℃ rise in average temperature by 2100, that will be accompanied by a significant decrease in rainfall and an increase in floods and droughts. While the country contributes only 0.24% of global greenhouse gas emissions, its government has pledged to reduce them by 40% by 2030 in order to help combat global warming.
13. Thailand
Global Warming Impact Score: 68.1
Thailand has a coastline of 3,219 km and therefore, is threatened by the rising sea levels that may cause 11 million people to lose their homes. Additionally, the impact of global warming could be worsened by El Niño, resulting in lower rainfall, longer hot and dry periods, and consequent droughts.
12. Ethiopia
Global Warming Impact Score: 68.3
After 6 consecutive years of insufficient rainfall during the rainy season,24 million people in Ethiopia are facing hunger caused by a devastating drought, as noted by Rescue.org. Apart from this, the rise in temperatures caused by El Niño coupled with global warming may also lead to a Malaria outbreak within the country, which killed more than 13,000 people in 2019 alone.
11. Niger
Global Warming Impact Score: 69.7
Niger is a part of the Central Sahel region in Africa and is one of the top countries most affected by climate change. The resulting desertification is causing the country to lose approximately 110,000 hectares of arable land every year. Niger’s temperatures are expected to increase by 2-4℃ by 2080.
10. Nepal
Global Warming Impact Score: 69.9
The global rise in temperatures and the consequent melting of glaciers has threatened Nepal with heavy floods, landslides, and the resulting shortage of food. The country is also losing important glaciers of the Hindukush Himalayan ranges that have provided fresh water to 1.89 billion people for centuries, at a 65% faster rate compared to previous decades. The severity of the temperature could also result in diarrhea outbreaks, which can result in more than 6,000 annual deaths within the country.
9. India
Global Warming Impact Score: 72.3
India is one of the most devastated countries by global warming that has lost more than 24,000 people to heat waves alone during the last three decades. According to an estimate, the rising temperatures could contribute to diminishing the country’s GDP by 2.8% by 2050.
8. Madagascar
Global Warming Impact Score: 72.9
Madagascar has been simultaneously hit by cyclones and droughts due to global warming that caused the destruction of crops and rendered 2 million people severely hungry, with certain UN agencies even referring to the situation as a famine. South Madagascar is undergoing the region’s driest conditions in 40 years, which has also threatened the rare wildlife species found exclusively within diverse ecosystems of the country.
7. Philippines
Global Warming Impact Score: 75.5
Philipines is set to experience an increase of 1.8-2.2℃ in average temperatures by 2050. Since the country consists of 7,641 islands, it is also highly vulnerable to floods, cyclones, and the loss of land due to rising sea levels.
6. Bangladesh
Global Warming Impact Score: 75.7
Bangladesh has faced more than 185 natural disasters due to global warming from 2000 onwards and has suffered a total economic loss of $3.72 billion. Global warming has also rendered 143 million people in Bangladesh environmentally insecure, and the constantly rising sea levels will cause the country to lose an additional 11% of land by 2050.
