09 Sep Africans are the most exposed people to wildfires

New research led by the United Nations University, Institute for Water, Environment and Health (UNU-INWEH) scientists, has found that the number of people directly exposed to wildland wildfires increased by 40 per cent globally from 2002 and 2021.

85 per cent of that exposure occurred in Africa.

“We are surprised by the disproportionate impacts of wildfires on humans in Africa. We knew that around 65% of global burned area occurs there, but their 85% share of human exposure shows a pronounced impact that deserves more attention,” said Dr Mojtaba Sadegh, Climate and Wildfire Analytics Lead at UNU-INWEH.