East Asia and Pacific

In FY17, GFDRR supported activities in more than 12 countries across the East Asia and Pacific. These activities leveraged $2.8 billion in development finance across the region.

East Asia Pacific is the most disaster-stricken region in the world. More than 1.6 billion people in the region were affected by disasters between 2000 and 2011. Many of the areas worst hit are urban centers. Between 1980 and 2012, the number of people living in cities in East Asia and the Pacific increased by over one billion, more than all other regions combined. Another billion are expected to move to these cities by 2040. Poorly planned development and increasing concentration of people and assets in urban centers creates disaster hot spots.

Without action, multi-billion dollar disasters could become increasingly common. To address this trend, there is an urgent need to invest in risk analysis to inform urban planning and development. Investments are also needed for better hazard forecasting, information systems, and emergency response. More needs to be done to better understand the fiscal impact of disasters, and how to guide recovery planning in a way to build back communities that are safer and stronger.

In East Asia and the Pacific, GFDRR has been deeply engaged in developing comprehensive disaster risk management programs. In the Philippines, for instance, GFDRR provided technical assistance for up to $9 billion risk in reduction investments for the Metro Manila Flood Risk Master Plan, and supported recovery efforts after Typhoon Haiyan. In the Pacific’s small island states, GFDRR is helping to protect countries against economic shocks due to natural disasters through an innovative risk financing mechanism. Overall, as shown above, almost 40% of GFDRR grants went toward risk reduction efforts, with approximately a fifth focused on risk identification and preparedness.