ii / Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR)
Forewords
T
he growing impact of natural disasters poses an increasingly significant threat to development gains around the world. Each year, disasters like November’s Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines bring more grim reminders of the devastation and destruction that they can cause. Investing in resilience and integrating risk management into economic planning is now mainstream development. Over the last 30 years, the world has lost an estimated $3.8 trillion to natural disaster. Developing countries bear the brunt of both economic and human losses. Since 1980, low-income countries have accounted for only 9 percent of disaster events but 48 percent of fatalities. Climate change only compounds the problem, creating an urgent need for the international community to align disaster risk management and climate change agendas, integrating both into all aspects of development planning. This year’s annual report highlights significant achievements made in this direction. GFDRR is mainstreaming risk considerations into development programs and scaling up action, and the new strategy that was adopted by its Consultative Group in December 2012 is starting to bear fruit. In fiscal year 2012-13 (FY13), GFDRR-supported initiatives in weather and climate forecasting and monitoring in half a dozen low-income countries brought an additional $129.7 million in investments from national governments and international organizations. More than one million farmers in India received insurance last year through the newly reformed National Agricultural Insurance Scheme, which GFDRR supports through ongoing technical assistance. And, when Nigeria was hit by severe flooding in November 2012, GFDRR supported a post-disaster needs assessment that served as the foundation for a $500 million program funded by the International Development Association (IDA) to address flood risk in that country. FY13 also brought new momentum to GFDRR’s effort to place disaster risk management on the international development agenda at high-level meetings such
as during the Mexican 2012 Presidency of the G20, the Annual Meetings of the World Bank Group and International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the United Nations’ (UN) Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction. Through its partnerships with the World Bank Group, UN agencies, regional organizations, academic institutions, the private sector, and civil society, GFDRR is stepping up its efforts at the national and international levels to influence policy dialogue on disaster risk management and development. Going forward, GFDRR’s new programmatic framework, organized around “Five Pillars of Action” as set forth in its strategy, will strengthen its engagement with partner countries. The new framework also provides systematic monitoring of the work GFDRR supports—measuring impact and documenting lessons learned—so future interventions are efficient and effective. As I step down as Vice President of the Sustainable Development Network, I would like to commend GFDRR and its partners for ensuring that disaster risk management is a central element of country development strategies. In my new role as the Vice President and Special Envoy on Climate Change, I will continue to emphasize the urgent need for action to reduce disaster and climate risks. The GFDRR Annual Report 2013 showcases both the small steps and big results. Disaster risk and its management is a global challenge requiring a global coalition. Thanks to the financial support and guidance of its donors and partners, GFDRR will continue to make inroads to a future where the world’s poorest countries and most vulnerable people have the resilience to recover quickly from disasters.
Rachel Kyte Chair, GFDRR Consultative Group World Bank Group Vice President and Special Envoy on Climate Change