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Vodafone has highlighted how connectivity is becoming critical infrastructure for climate resilience, as extreme weather events become more frequent, more severe and more disruptive.
A new report, Connectivity as a Lifeline: Enabling Climate Resilience in a Disrupted World, draws on Vodafone and Vodacom experience across Europe and Africa to show how mobile networks and digital services support climate resilience, from early warning systems and network preparedness to emergency response, digital aid and long-term recovery.
Extreme weather events have increased significantly in recent decades, affecting 1.6 billion people and causing more than US$2 trillion in economic losses over the past decade alone.
The findings show that connectivity can mean the difference between disruption and disaster, or between rapid recovery and prolonged crisis. When climate shocks hit, the ability to communicate, receive warnings, access services and move money becomes essential to public safety, emergency coordination and community resilience.
The report finds that
- Early warning systems can reduce damage by up to 30 per cent when issued within 24 hours of a hazard, but only if warnings can reach people quickly and at scale.
- Around one-third of the world’s population remains unprotected by early warning systems, despite 95 per cent having access to mobile broadband networks and close to 80 per cent owning a mobile phone.
- Power failures remain a major risk to network resilience, with around 25 per cent of reported telecoms network incidents in the UK linked to power outages.
- 2 in 5 countries have not started establishing National Emergency Telecommunication Plans, leaving gaps in crisis preparedness and coordination.
- Less than 10 per cent of global climate finance reaches local-level climate activities, highlighting the role mobile money, digital vouchers and digital payments can play in getting support directly to communities.
Joakim Reiter, Chief External and Corporate Affairs Officer, Vodafone Group said, “As climate-related disasters become more frequent and severe, the risk is clear. If connectivity fails, warnings may not reach people, emergency services may be harder to coordinate, and communities may be cut off when they most need support.
This means that connectivity is now critical infrastructure for resilience. It must be strengthened before climate shocks hit, so it can keep people, services and economies connected when other systems are under strain.”
The report also shows how digital services can support recovery when physical systems are disrupted. In South Africa, Vodacom used digital tools including E-learning, digital lending and E-vouchers to help communities recover after the KwaZulu-Natal floods.
Vodafone is calling for governments, regulators, industry partners and humanitarian organisations to work together to ensure connectivity remains a lifeline before, during and after climate shocks.
