From 2005 to 2014 the Asia-Pacific region had 1,625 reported disaster events. Approximately 500,000 people lost their lives, around 1.4 billion people were affected, and there was $523 billion worth of economic damage.
Titled “Disasters Without Borders: Regional Resilience for Sustainable Development,” the ESCAP report outlines examples of success in region by sharing technology, information and expertise in disaster preparedness. It also identifies issues like cross-border floods and landslides as areas where information and resource sharing must be improved.
The report calls for increased Investing in disaster risk reduction as a cost-effective measure that can avert or minimize costly damage. For instance: investments in hydrometeorological early warning systems in Asia and the Pacific, can have returns between 4 and 36 times the initial investment.
Of particular concern is the potential for a prolonged drought, which will slow down income growth not just in agriculture, but also in related activities, including agro-processing, with added effects for employment and incomes in other parts of the rural economy.
To that end, the report recommends these resiliency steps:
- Long-term risk management
- A livelihood approach (support poverty eradication as part of inclusive and sustainable development)
- Maintaining healthy watersheds and soil systems
- Extensive coordination and planning across all key stakeholders.
- Adapting science and technology including space applications, hydrology and meteorology
- Agricultural insurance with payouts triggered by rainfall or temperature thresholds, with opportunities for public-private partnerships
- Social safety nets, and
- Regional cooperation.