This article has been accepted for publication but has not been through the copyediting, typesetting, pagination and proofreading process, which may lead to differences between this version and the final one. Please cite this article as doi: 10.4081/jphia.2021.1399 Variations in climate and global spread of COVID-19: Implications for control in tropical and warmer climates Osman Dar, Alimuddin Zumla, Lara Hollmann, Mishal Khan, Raji Tajudeen and Fazal Karim Dar Osman Dar: Chatham House Global Health Programme, Royal Institute of International Affairs, and Public Health England, London, United Kingdom. Email: osman.dar@phe.gov.uk Alimuddin Zumla: Division of Infection and Immunity, University College London, and NIHR Biomedical Research Centre, UCL Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom. Email: a.i.zumla@gmail.com Lara Hollmann: Chatham House Global Health Programme, Royal Institute of International Affairs, London, United Kingdom. Email: LHollmann@chathamhouse.org Mishal Khan: Faculty of Public Health & Policy, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom. Email: mishal.khan@lshtm.ac.uk Raji Tajudeen: Head of Public Health Institutes and Research, Africa Centres for Disease Control, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Email: TajudeenR@africa-union.org Fazal Karim Dar: Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Infectious Diseases, Arabian Gulf University, Manama, Bahrain. Email: fazalkd@agu.edu.bh Acknowledgements: AZ, OD and LH are members of the Pan-African Network on Emerging and Re-Emerging Infections (PANDORA-ID-NET) funded by the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership the EU Horizon 2020 Framework Programme for Research and Innovation. Correspondence: Dr Osman Dar, Chatham House – Global Health, 10 St. James’s Square, London SW1Y 4LE, United Kingdom; Osman.Dar@phe.gov.uk; +44 7951 140354 Keywords: COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, Climate, environmental, intervention, air-conditioning, temperature, humidity Author contribution: OD, AZ, MK and FKD conceptualized the piece and OD developed the first draft. All authors contributed to writing and finalizing the manuscript. Conflict of Interest: The authors have nothing to disclose. Accepted Paper