The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) today released updated guidelines to help countries deal with extreme wildfires. The document, “Voluntary Guidelines for Integrated Fire Management: Strategic Principles and Actions,” updates two-decade-old guidance from the UN agency and includes new recommendations “to address the challenges arising from the current climate crisis,” the organization said in a statement. By the end of the century, extreme wildfires are expected to become about 50 percent more frequent, and environmental changes linked to climate change, such as more frequent droughts, high temperatures and strong winds, “are likely to result in hotter, drier and longer fire seasons.” According to the FAO, about 340 million to 370 million hectares of the Earth’s surface are burned annually by wildfires, with losses for sustainable development and the environment. livelihoods of communities and generating large volumes of greenhouse gas emissions. “How we respond to the challenge of forest fires is critical (…). We must shift our focus from reactive responses to proactive strategies and prioritize prevention and preparedness,” said the Director of FAO’s Forestry Division, Zhimin Wu, quoted in the statement, who launched the new edition of the guide during the 9th World Forest Week, taking place in Rome. The launch of the updated guidelines is “the debut activity” of the Global Fire Management Center, created in 2023 by FAO and the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), with the support of the United States, Canada, France, Germany and Portugal, as well as the Republic of Korea. The center announced that it has already received funding worth almost five million dollars, an “essential support for its mission to reduce the adverse effects of forest fires on society, landscapes and the climate.” (RM-NM) Source: Rádio Moçambique Online
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