Financing Investment in Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation: Opportunities and Challenges

Abstract

AbstractAsia, a rapidly emerging global economic power, is vulnerable to natural disasters. Its annualized flood-related losses, amounting to 53 billion USD and approximately 16,000 human lives, are expected to increase with further climate change. Several international organizations have recommended increasing investment in disaster risk reduction (DRR) and climate change adaptation (CCA). Developing Asian economies’ investment of 33.6 billion USD (0.21% of their GDP) in flood protection in 2015 is projected to reach 100 billion USD annually by 2030. Official development assistance (ODA) in DRR—5 billion USD/year from 1991 to 2010—increased by 2.6 times to 13.3 billion USD/year from 2011 to 2020. Simultaneously, investment in risk prevention or reduction decreased from 680 to 550 million USD/year (a decrease from 12.7 to 4.1% as the share in DRR assistance). This book collates the existing data, research findings, conceptual works of the scholars and senior officials of disaster management organizations who directly manage or investigate natural disasters in the Asia-Pacific, and practical cases of investment in DRR and CCA. This chapter examines the international initiatives for promoting investment in DRR and CCA and the current and projected funding for DRR and CCA to construct the background for this compendium and outlines its chapters.KeywordsAsia-pacificEmergency responseFloodJapanOfficial development assistance