ECONOMIES BATTERED BY THE WEATHER
Tukuitonga told the gathering the South Pacific countries, through climate change alone, had been taking massive losses to annual gross domestic product (GDP) – 20-30% or more — due to the effects of extreme weather events, especially cyclones.
While they are among some of the world’s poorest in dollar terms, for a bad year like 2009-10, those countries would be losing overall some $10 billion.
More figures reeled off by Dr Tukuitonga set out the pattern of relentless bad news, against which he offered some patches of light in terms of actions being taken, or which might be taken, by governments and other interests.
