The Philippines has once again topped the World Risk Index for being exposed to extreme weather effects, most especially flooding, according to the World Risk Report 2025 that was published last week.
The report, that discussed the disaster risk for 193 countries worldwide, covering all member states of the United Nations and over 99 percent of the global population, indicated this year that risk hot spots remain concentrated on the continents of Asia and the Americas, along with Africa, which it said “continues to show the highest levels of vulnerability worldwide.”
“The Philippines is once again at the top of the World Risk Index this year: a country characterized by high geographic fragmentation and high exposure to weather-related extremes,” the report said.
The Philippines’ risk percentage was ahead by a large margin at 45.56; followed by India at 40.73, Indonesia, 39,80; Colombia, 39.26; and Mexico at 39.96.
The report also explained how effective governance structures are “crucial” to a community’s ability to prepare for and respond to any potential flooding. “Flood risks in the Philippines vary significantly from region to region and are influenced by geography, infrastructure, and spatial planning,” it read.
Like its fellow Southeast Asian nations of Vietnam and Myanmar, the Philippines has high population density, with exposed locations and intense monsoon cycles that would converge.
Despite this exposure and vulnerability to extreme weather that has become common knowledge by now, Filipinos still continue to struggle with its destructive effects, whether we are being proactive or reactive. One obvious reason would be that the intensity and frequency of the extreme weather events have been on an uptrend, but another significant factor would be our misfortune at having a government that has wasted so much on corruption, resulting in projects and mitigation efforts that are either substandard or non-existent.
As long as the corrupt wallow in ill-gotten wealth at the taxpayers’ expense, Filipinos will continue to suffer from the ravages of man and nature. Isn’t it time we did something about it?*
