Opening Address at ASMC-WMO Regional Forum at Sands Expo and Convention Centre - Ms Grace Fu

OPENING ADDRESS BY MS GRACE FU, MINISTER FOR SUSTAINABILITY AND THE ENVIRONMENT AND MINISTER-IN-CHARGE OF TRADE RELATIONS, AT ASMC-WMO REGIONAL FORUM AT SANDS EXPO AND CONVENTION CENTRE ON 4 SEPTEMBER 2024

Professor Celeste Saulo, Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO)

Members of the Diplomatic Corps of ASEAN Member States

International representatives from your respective national meteorological and hydrological services

Distinguished guests

1 A very warm welcome to this inaugural Regional Forum, organised jointly by the ASEAN Specialised Meteorological Centre (ASMC) and the WMO for Southeast Asia.

2 This is a critical time in history. We are experiencing the warmest years since global temperature records began in 1850, with key climate indicators such as sea level rise and greenhouse gas levels being surpassed. This year looks set to follow the trend and become the world’s hottest year, with every month in the first half of this year being the hottest on record. In Southeast Asia, the extreme heatwaves experienced in May were swiftly followed by torrential rain and severe floods in the recent monsoon months.

Impact of climate change on Southeast Asia

3 Such extreme weather events caused significant loss of property and human lives in this part of the world. We are particularly vulnerable to climate change. With a geography defined by long coastlines, river deltas and low-lying islands, the lives and livelihoods of millions of people are directly affected by sea level rise and increased flood risks. We need to apply our knowledge of science and technology to deal with this, particularly on how climate services can support climate adaptation and disaster risk reduction in Southeast Asia.

4 Many economic activities, such as in agriculture and tourism, are dependent on natural resources, and are sensitive to climate variations and extreme weather events. ASEAN is at risk of losing 35% of its GDP by 2050 due to climate change and natural hazards.

5 Within our region, climate impacts in a particular country will also be felt in neighbouring countries through mutual dependency in trade in goods and services. Hence, we need collective capabilities in adaptation planning, to strengthen our climate resilience.

6 Climate science and services help us reduce the uncertainty in climate projections, and plan for evidence-based adaptation. Some scientists have called the Indo-Pacific Maritime Continent, which covers much of Southeast Asia, the engine room of the global climate system. Our region influences monsoons and El Nino, with far-reaching global impacts even across the Pacific. SEA also has vast tropical rainforests which are significant carbon sinks, that play a vital role in mitigating climate change.

7 Yet, climate scientists have found the climate of this region and its impacts challenging to model, due to the complex interplay of land-water interactions, and the presence of dense urban ecosystems in our rapidly growing cities.

8 Singapore has hosted the ASMC since 1993. It serves the ASEAN region through regional weather, climate and haze assessment and outlooks. ASMC also strengthens the region’s early warning and monitoring capabilities through research and development and regional capacity-building programmes.

9 The ASMC works closely with the WMO on regional training programmes and workshops, for example, on the use of sub-seasonal-to-seasonal predictions (S2S) as well as climate change projections. The ASMC also conducts biannual ASEAN Climate Outlook Forums in collaboration with the WMO and ASEAN national meteorological and hydrological services, to provide consensus-based seasonal climate outlooks for the region.

10 Beyond contributing through ASMC, Singapore is an active supporter of WMO’s regional initiatives and is a member of the WMO Executive Council and Management Group for Regional Association 5 of the Southwest Pacific. Since 2018, Singapore has hosted the WMO Regional Office for Asia and the South-West Pacific (RAP).

11 I would like to take this opportunity to highlight another milestone in Singapore’s partnership with WMO. At the 78th WMO Executive Council Session in June this year, Singapore was designated as the host of the WMO Regional Specialised Meteorological Centre for Vegetation Fire and Smoke Pollution Forecasts (RSMC-VFSP). The designation of Singapore as the RSMC-VFSP is a culmination of over three decades of support to the Southeast Asia region in the areas of fires and haze monitoring, assessment and early warning under the ASMC.

12 The RSMC-VFSP Singapore is among the first two of such WMO regional centres world-wide. These centres conduct atmospheric smoke haze dispersion modelling and provide forecast products to advise on fire activity and surface concentration of pollutants originating from fires.

13 The centre aims to provide information to support decision-making in emergency response, environmental protection, public health management, fire management and law enforcement. Information that will be made available through a dedicated website include model forecasts, satellite images, hotspots and sub-seasonal outlooks, as well as fire risk products made available by Met Malaysia.

Singapore’s international efforts in climate adaptation

14 Earlier this year, the Centre for Climate Research Singapore (CCRS) completed the Third National Climate Change Study, known as V3. Based on a set of carefully selected global climate models from IPCC’s 6th Assessment Report, V3 downscales the projections to higher resolutions of 8km over Southeast Asia. V3 is currently the highest resolution set of climate change projections covering Southeast Asia, and CCRS is working with international and regional stakeholders to share this dataset for further studies. We hope that these climate data will allow our regional partners to formulate and adjust their own climate adaptation strategies.

15 Beyond V3, Singapore aims to further understanding of climate risks to food production. An Asian Development Bank (ADB) study found that by the end of the century, rice yield in some parts of Southeast Asia could decline by up to 50 percent if there is no intervention. This could have cascading effects to food supply chains around the world. Through a MOU between Singapore and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (UNFAO), Singapore will be sharing V3 climate projection data for incorporation into UNFAO’s climate risk assessment tools. This is a joint effort which we hope will strengthen agrifood systems resilience across Southeast Asia.

16 Another area of scientific interest of Singapore is the impact of rising temperatures. Annual mean temperatures over Southeast Asia land areas are expected to increase by up to 5 degrees Celsius by end-Century. Stakeholders are responding to this challenge of heat resilience. The Heat Resilience and Performance Centre (HRPC) at the National University of Singapore’s School of Medicine has launched the Southeast Asia Heat Health Hub of the Global Heat Health Information Network (GHHIN), an initiative by WHO and WMO, to build regional capacity to manage heat-related health risks, in areas such as urban heat, heat impact on workers, and practices in heat management.

17 Singapore will continue to support the next chapter of international climate action and adaptation planning, through the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) Seventh Assessment Report, AR7. Professor Winston Chow, who is here today, co-chairs the IPCC’s Working Group II and will lead the next cycle of work in the AR7 to assess climate change impacts, adaptation and vulnerabilities across diverse communities and ecosystems.

Conclusion

18 From food security to heat resilience, climate services provide critical information that help build the region’s resilience to climate change, often involving collaboration among stakeholders across borders. The ASMC-WMO Regional Forum provides a useful and timely platform for participants to share insights, gain better informed decision-making and enhance our preparedness for climate change and extreme weather events.

19 I look forward to the ASMC-WMO Regional Forum catalysing more partnerships and action plans for a Weather-Ready and Climate-Resilient ASEAN.