1.8bn people in South Asia face extreme heat risks by 2030

Nearly 1.8 billion people in South Asia will face extreme heat risks by 2030, but market failures and income constraints are forcing them to rely on basic adaptation measures, a World Bank report said on Tuesday.

- Jayashree Nandi

NEW DELHI:

South Asia is the most climate-vulnerable region among emerging market and developing economies, according to the report titled "From Risk to Resilience: Helping People and Firms Adapt in South Asia."

Temperature projections show that by 2030, approximately 89% of South Asia's population will face extreme heat risks.

In 2021, an average of six hours a day were too hot to safely work outside in Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. That is expected to rise to seven or eight hours a day by 2050.