
For the third straight year, the Philippines remained the most at-risk country to extreme natural events and negative climate change, according to the 2024 edition of the World Risk Report, which included all 193 member states of the United Nations for the first time.
The report assesses disaster risks by evaluating each country’s “exposure to natural hazards, the susceptibility of the population, and the coping and adaptive capacities of societies.”
It showed the Philippines at the top spot with the highest risk, garnering 46.91 points. It was followed by Indonesia (41.13), India (40.96), Colombia (37.81), and Mexico (35.93).
The index is published annually by Bündnis Entwicklung Hilft and the Ruhr University Bochum – Institute for International Law of Peace and Armed Conflict, since 2011, calculated from the geometric mean of the country’s exposure and vulnerability according to 100 indicators.
Exposure refers to the extent to which populations are exposed to and affected by earthquakes, tsunamis, floodings, cyclones, droughts, and sea level rise. Vulnerability, on the other hand, refers to the likelihood to suffer from damage during natural disasters and the ability to respond quickly and in the long term.
The index “serves as a guidance for decision makers and identifies fields of action for disaster risk reduction.”
In response, Environment Secretary Ma. Antonia Yulo Loyzaga explained the high exposure and vulnerability by saying that the country is also one of the fastest growing economies in the world. She said they are studying the report carefully but have already been working to build the country’s capacity to protect the economic gains, along with lives and livelihoods.
In a statement, the Office of Civil Defense said the country’s ranking in the report is “a clear reminder” to keep working together to tackle and address the challenges and issues at hand.
Although it is already a given that the Philippines, being in the Ring of Fire and the Typhoon Belt, would always be among the most at-risk countries to natural threats on the planet, it does not excuse inaction as there still so much Filipinos can do to make their communities safer when ever natural disasters do strike. Disaster preparedness and risk reduction is an ongoing effort that still needs the attention of the public and private sector alike, if the country is going to be safer, even as disasters are expected to grow in destructive power as time goes by.*