Speaker
Description
Rising temperatures under climate change has contributed to a range of heat-related illnesses such as heat stress, heat stroke, heat syncope, and heat exhaustion, especially in urban areas. Despite the changes in Ghana’s climate and the rapid urbanization, much is not known about the risk level of urban populations to heat-related illness in the country. In this study, we evaluated the risk of population in Greater Accra Region to heat-related diseases under the change climate using bioclimatic indices. We generated hourly maximum and minimum air temperature and relative humidity data from ERA5 over 30 years (1991 to 2020) and calculated the Heat Index and Humidex for the Greater Accra Region. Our findings indicate that the average temperatures in the region have increased at a rate of approximately 0.02◦C per year, while relative humidity has declined by approximately 0.01◦C per year. This study observed that residents of Greater Accra face increasing and persistent heat stress driven by rising Humidex and Heat Index values, intensified by urbanization and the Urban Heat Island effect. Measures such as community awareness, early warning, and adaptation strategies are essential to mitigate heat-related health risks.
Keywords: Heat-related illness, Climate Change, Bioclimatic Index, Ghana