Disaster Risk Reduction: UNISDR's New Report

The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) has released its third installment of the Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction. The 2013 edition (GAR13), titled "From Shared Risk to Shared Value: The Business Case for Disaster Risk Reduction" focuses on the interconnectedness of the global economy and disaster risk throughout the world.

GAR13 estimates that over $100 billion in economic losses has occurred in the past three years as a result of disasters. The report "highlights the interdependence of the public and private sectors and why business competitiveness, sustainability and resilience will also depend on governments’ ability to manage disaster risk through effective policies. Governments depend on business investment to generate employment and the wealth required to provide public services. Likewise, businesses depend on reliable public infrastructure and utilities, on efficient urban systems, on an educated and healthy workforce and on a range of ecosystem services. Reducing disaster risks in business and in public investment presents a win-win situation for both."

Homeland Security Forum also covered the release of the report, noting the comments of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon: "Let us not shy away from the meaning of these numbers: Economic losses from disasters are out of control. They can only be reduced in partnership with the private sector, including investment banks and insurance companies. For too long, markets have placed greater value on short-term returns than on sustainability and resilience. At long last, we are coming to understand that reducing exposure to disaster risk is not a cost but an opportunity to make that investment more attractive in the long term."

read more