From Risk to Resilience: Accelerating Implementation of the Sendai Framework

Disasters are becoming more frequent, more severe, and more interconnected. The world is navigating a deeply uncertain global risk landscape, where climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss, also known as the triple planetary crisis, deepen inequalities and undermine growth. These pressures are destabilizing systems across borders and sectors, from food and health to infrastructure and finance. While the global disaster mortality rate has nearly halved, and the number of countries with disaster risk reduction (DRR) strategies and early warning systems has doubled, progress remains uneven. More people are affected, infrastructure damage is rising, and financial losses are climbing.

Growing recognition of these risks has helped mobilize action under the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, a global agreement that calls for the substantial reduction of disaster risk and losses in lives, livelihoods, and health, as well as in the economic, physical, social, cultural, and environmental assets of individuals, communities, and countries. The Framework has helped countries integrate risk considerations into national strategies, align with sustainable development goals, and expand early warning coverage. However, policies and institutions still tend to prioritize response over prevention, limiting the long-term resilience of communities.

Advancing Risk Reduction: Progress and Challenges

Across the four priority areas of the Sendai Framework, understanding risk, risk governance, investing in resilience, and preparedness and recovery, countries and partners have made measurable progress. New tools like satellite-based risk mapping, AI, and disaster tracking platforms are improving early detection and decision-making. Countries like Fiji, Comoros, and Montenegro adopted updated risk laws and strategies that include gender and vulnerability considerations. Regional cooperation deepened, with over 1,800 local governments participating in the Making Cities Resilient 2030 initiative. Countries such as Barbados and Mexico have adopted innovative financing strategies such as debt-for-climate swap, and an expanded catastrophe bond program. While progress is being made, challenges still remain. DRR funding remains inadequate, with most countries meeting only 10 to 25 per cent of needs. Use of disaggregated data remains limited: only 71 countries report sex-disaggregated data; 31 report disability data.

Disproportionate Risk, Unequal Capacity

Least developed countries (LDCs), landlocked developing countries (LLDCs), small island developing states (SIDS), middle-income countries and conflict-affected countries, face disproportionate challenges despite contributing the least to underlying global risks. LDCs suffer some of the highest disaster-related economic losses as a percentage of GDP, while LLDCs struggle with infrastructure gaps and limited access to early warning systems. SIDS remain on the frontlines of sea-level rise, tropical storms, and coastal erosion, often with fragile economies and high exposure. Many middle-income countries experience mounting damages but lack sufficient access to financing or international support. Conflict-affected contexts face compounded risks, where disasters overlap with weak institutions, displacement, and humanitarian crises. These challenges underscore the urgent need for targeted support, inclusive governance, and risk-informed development planning.

Building Resilience for a Risk Informed Future

Recent climate shocks, including those intensified by El Niño, highlight that disaster risks are not distant threats but immediate and escalating realities, especially for countries with limited capacity to adapt. The Secretary General Report (A/80/333): Implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030, emphasizes that disaster risk reduction is not only about managing emergencies but about creating the conditions for sustainable and inclusive development. It calls on governments to invest in early warning systems, strengthen national data ecosystems, and integrate risk reduction into urban planning, infrastructure, and social protection systems. Greater international cooperation, through mechanisms such as the Santiago Network and new climate financing instruments, will be essential. Looking ahead, the use of emerging technologies, support for locally led action, and the adoption of risk-informed governance must become standard practice. For countries that are most exposed and vulnerable, these actions are not optional. They are the foundation for building long-term resilience and enabling fair and lasting development.

Read the full report here.