Global warming sets new world record

Year 2016 was the warmest since modern recordkeeping began, according to recent independent announcements by NASA and NOAA. This was the third year in a row to set a new record for global average surface temperatures. Gavin Schmidt from NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies said “We don't expect record years every year, but the ongoing long-term warming trend is clear.”  The planet's average surface temperature has risen about 1.1 degrees Celsius since the late 19th century. Most of the warming has occurred in the past 35 years, with 16 of the 17 warmest years recorded since 2001.   

In the Middle East and North of Africa (MENA) region, the IPCC predicts that if greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise, the climate will become even hotter and drier. Countries from Morocco to Saudi Arabia already recorded a record-shattering temperatures last summer. Research on how the climate will develop over the course of the 21st century, is yielding alarming results. Under the “business-as-usual” scenario, if global temperature were to increase on average only by 2 C° compared to pre-industrial times, summer temperatures in the MENA region may stay above 30°C at night and could rise to 46°C during the day. By the end of the century, midday temperatures on hot days could climb to 50 C° and heat waves may occur ten times more often than they do now. A combination of extreme temperature and humidity in some parts of the region, particularly in the Gulf, may make conditions near – lethal and intolerable to human life.

The social, economic, and ecological impacts of climate change in the MENA region are expected to be higher than elsewhere. Low-lying coastal areas in Tunisia, Qatar, Libya, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and specially Egypt are at particular risk. It has been predicted that many people may eventually have to leave the region due to the deterioration of living conditions. According to the World Bank, rising sea level could affect 43 port cities - 24 in the Middle East and 19 in North Africa. In the case of Alexandria, Egypt, a 0.5 meter rise would leave more than 2 million people displaced, with 35 billion dollars in losses in land, property, and infrastructure, as well as incalculable losses of historic and cultural assets. The Syrian economist, Ahmad Sadiddin, is presently assessing the financial implications of global warming in the Arab world.