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Natural disasters force 26 million people into poverty and cost $520bn in losses every year, new World Bank analysis finds
The impact of extreme natural disasters is equivalent to a global US$520 billion loss in annual consumption, and forces some 26 million people into poverty each year, a new report from the World Bank and the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR) reveals.
“Severe climate shocks threaten to roll back decades of progress against poverty,” said World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim. “Storms, floods, and droughts have dire human and economic consequences, with poor people often paying the heaviest price. Building resilience to disasters not only makes economic sense, it is a moral imperative.”
The report, Unbreakable: Building the Resilience of the Poor in the Face of Natural Disasters, warns that the combined human and economic impacts of extreme weather on poverty are far more devastating than previously understood.
In the East Asia and Pacific region alone, disaster damages are 50 percent more than previous estimates, totaling US$200 billion per year.
In all of the 117 countries studied, the effect on well-being, measured in terms of lost consumption, is found to be larger than asset losses. Because disaster losses disproportionately affect poor people, who have a limited ability to cope with them, the report estimates that impact on well-being in these countries is equivalent to consumption losses of about US$520 billion a year. This outstrips all other estimates by as much as 60 per cent.
With the climate summit, COP22, underway, the report’s findings underscore the urgency for climate-smart policies that better protect the most vulnerable. Poor people are typically more exposed to natural hazards, losing more as a share of their wealth and are often unable to draw on support from family, friends, financial systems, or governments.
Unbreakable uses a new method of measuring disaster damages, factoring in the unequal burden of natural disasters on the poor. Myanmar’s 2008 Cyclone Nargis, for example, forced up to half of the country’s poor farmers to sell off assets including land, to relieve the debt burden following the cyclone. Economic and social repercussions of Nargis will be felt for generations.
In the Philippines, an estimated one million Filipinos slid into poverty after the 2013 Typhoon Haiyan sapped US$12.9 billion from the national economy and destroyed over a million homes.
The report assesses, for the first time, the benefits of resilience-building interventions in the countries studied. These include early warning systems, improved access to personal banking, insurance policies, and social protection systems (like cash transfers and public works programmes) that could help people better respond to and recover from shocks. It finds that these measures combined would help countries and communities save US$100 billion a year and reduce the overall impact of disasters on well-being by 20 percent.
“Countries are enduring a growing number of unexpected shocks as a result of climate change,” said Stephane Hallegatte, a GFDRR lead economist, who led preparation of the report. “Poor people need social and financial protection from disasters that cannot be avoided. With risk policies in place that we know to be effective, we have the opportunity to prevent millions of people from falling into poverty.”
Efforts to build poor people’s resilience are already gaining ground, the report shows. For example, two weeks after Cyclone Pam struck Vanuatu in 2015, the small island state received a US$1.9 million cash injection by way of the Pacific Catastrophe Risk Insurance Programme (PCRAFI), the first programme of its kind in the South Pacific.
And in the Philippines, following Typhoon Yolanda, the government increased grants and temporarily lifted the conditions on a cash transfer programme to provide urgent humanitarian support to affected households.
Building resilience is key to meeting the World Bank Group’s twin goals of ending global poverty and boosting shared prosperity.
“Severe climate shocks threaten to roll back decades of progress against poverty,” said World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim. “Storms, floods, and droughts have dire human and economic consequences, with poor people often paying the heaviest price. Building resilience to disasters not only makes economic sense, it is a moral imperative.”
The report, Unbreakable: Building the Resilience of the Poor in the Face of Natural Disasters, warns that the combined human and economic impacts of extreme weather on poverty are far more devastating than previously understood.
In the East Asia and Pacific region alone, disaster damages are 50 percent more than previous estimates, totaling US$200 billion per year.
In all of the 117 countries studied, the effect on well-being, measured in terms of lost consumption, is found to be larger than asset losses. Because disaster losses disproportionately affect poor people, who have a limited ability to cope with them, the report estimates that impact on well-being in these countries is equivalent to consumption losses of about US$520 billion a year. This outstrips all other estimates by as much as 60 per cent.
With the climate summit, COP22, underway, the report’s findings underscore the urgency for climate-smart policies that better protect the most vulnerable. Poor people are typically more exposed to natural hazards, losing more as a share of their wealth and are often unable to draw on support from family, friends, financial systems, or governments.
Unbreakable uses a new method of measuring disaster damages, factoring in the unequal burden of natural disasters on the poor. Myanmar’s 2008 Cyclone Nargis, for example, forced up to half of the country’s poor farmers to sell off assets including land, to relieve the debt burden following the cyclone. Economic and social repercussions of Nargis will be felt for generations.
In the Philippines, an estimated one million Filipinos slid into poverty after the 2013 Typhoon Haiyan sapped US$12.9 billion from the national economy and destroyed over a million homes.
The report assesses, for the first time, the benefits of resilience-building interventions in the countries studied. These include early warning systems, improved access to personal banking, insurance policies, and social protection systems (like cash transfers and public works programmes) that could help people better respond to and recover from shocks. It finds that these measures combined would help countries and communities save US$100 billion a year and reduce the overall impact of disasters on well-being by 20 percent.
“Countries are enduring a growing number of unexpected shocks as a result of climate change,” said Stephane Hallegatte, a GFDRR lead economist, who led preparation of the report. “Poor people need social and financial protection from disasters that cannot be avoided. With risk policies in place that we know to be effective, we have the opportunity to prevent millions of people from falling into poverty.”
Efforts to build poor people’s resilience are already gaining ground, the report shows. For example, two weeks after Cyclone Pam struck Vanuatu in 2015, the small island state received a US$1.9 million cash injection by way of the Pacific Catastrophe Risk Insurance Programme (PCRAFI), the first programme of its kind in the South Pacific.
And in the Philippines, following Typhoon Yolanda, the government increased grants and temporarily lifted the conditions on a cash transfer programme to provide urgent humanitarian support to affected households.
Building resilience is key to meeting the World Bank Group’s twin goals of ending global poverty and boosting shared prosperity.
Indian Body Deregisters 'Modern Frankenstein' Clinical Trials on Dead
India has withdrawn permission for injecting the brains of dead patients with stem cells in an attempt to bring them back to life. India cancelled the world’s first `ReAnima’ trial on grounds of lapses in documentation. But trial team challenges its authority to cancel ethical trials on 20 cadavers.
New Delhi (Sputnik) — India has struck off an experiment to breathe life into brain-dead accident victims from its clinical trials registry on regulatory grounds. Many term the world’s first trials of this kind as a modern take on the classical Frankenstein theory of resuscitation of the dead. Geeta Jotwani, a senior official with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) told the Science Magazine about several regulatory lapses in the trial. These include failure to take permission from the Drug Controller General of India. “Now that ICMR has deregistered ReAnima, the Drug Controller General of India must stop the trial immediately,’’ she said. The project was a joint-venture between a Philadelphia-based biotech company and a hospital in a little known Himalayan town of Rudrapur. © PHOTO: PIXABAY Zombie Apocalypse Becomes Reality? Exotic Flesh-Eating Disease Strikes USA The trial recently gained a lot of media attention when an Indian orthopedic surgeon announced plans to inject the central nervous system of around 20 brain-dead people with stem cells and give laser and median nerve stimulation. These techniques have sometimes revived patients from coma. Bioquark, a US-based biotech firm, had agreed to supply specialized chemicals that may help regenerate brain cells. However, the doctor, Himanshu Bansal, says ICMR is overstepping its jurisdiction and the matter rests with the drug controller. CEO of the US firm Bioquark, Ira Pastor, also believes that the setback won’t stop the project. If necessary the trials may be moved outside India. “Many road blocks, no doubt, will pop up. But the project will go on,” Pastor said.
Read more: https://sputniknews.com/science/201611151047470636-india-dead-trials/
New Delhi (Sputnik) — India has struck off an experiment to breathe life into brain-dead accident victims from its clinical trials registry on regulatory grounds. Many term the world’s first trials of this kind as a modern take on the classical Frankenstein theory of resuscitation of the dead. Geeta Jotwani, a senior official with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) told the Science Magazine about several regulatory lapses in the trial. These include failure to take permission from the Drug Controller General of India. “Now that ICMR has deregistered ReAnima, the Drug Controller General of India must stop the trial immediately,’’ she said. The project was a joint-venture between a Philadelphia-based biotech company and a hospital in a little known Himalayan town of Rudrapur. © PHOTO: PIXABAY Zombie Apocalypse Becomes Reality? Exotic Flesh-Eating Disease Strikes USA The trial recently gained a lot of media attention when an Indian orthopedic surgeon announced plans to inject the central nervous system of around 20 brain-dead people with stem cells and give laser and median nerve stimulation. These techniques have sometimes revived patients from coma. Bioquark, a US-based biotech firm, had agreed to supply specialized chemicals that may help regenerate brain cells. However, the doctor, Himanshu Bansal, says ICMR is overstepping its jurisdiction and the matter rests with the drug controller. CEO of the US firm Bioquark, Ira Pastor, also believes that the setback won’t stop the project. If necessary the trials may be moved outside India. “Many road blocks, no doubt, will pop up. But the project will go on,” Pastor said.
Read more: https://sputniknews.com/science/201611151047470636-india-dead-trials/
Global News- Reuters.com
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Indian ships leave Chatgaon after good will visit
CHITTAGONG, Nov 15, 2016 (BSS) - Three ships of Indian Navy and Coast Guard -- INS Tir, INS Sujatha and ICGS Vharuna-- left Chittagong Dry Dock Jetty today after a five-day goodwill visit.
Chief Staff Officer of Chittagong Naval area Captain Kamal Naser formally saw off the three ships at the Dry Dock Jetty here, a press release of ISPR said.
During the visit, captains and officials of the Indian ships called on Rear Admiral M Shahin Iqbal, Commander of Chittagong Naval area and other officials of Navy, Coast Guard and Chittagong Port Authority, it said.
They also visited Bangladesh Navy ships "Somudra Joy" and "Somudra Avijan", Bangladesh Naval Academy, School of Maritime Warfare and Tactics (SMWT) and BNS Shaheed Moazzem base.
Besides, voluntary blood donation campaign at BNS Patenga, free medical campaign at Naval Academy were held under the supervision of Indian Navy while yoga campaign was held at BNS Isha Khan with the participation of Navy members of the two countries, the release said.
Chief Staff Officer of Chittagong Naval area Captain Kamal Naser formally saw off the three ships at the Dry Dock Jetty here, a press release of ISPR said.
During the visit, captains and officials of the Indian ships called on Rear Admiral M Shahin Iqbal, Commander of Chittagong Naval area and other officials of Navy, Coast Guard and Chittagong Port Authority, it said.
They also visited Bangladesh Navy ships "Somudra Joy" and "Somudra Avijan", Bangladesh Naval Academy, School of Maritime Warfare and Tactics (SMWT) and BNS Shaheed Moazzem base.
Besides, voluntary blood donation campaign at BNS Patenga, free medical campaign at Naval Academy were held under the supervision of Indian Navy while yoga campaign was held at BNS Isha Khan with the participation of Navy members of the two countries, the release said.
First-ever Pakistan Film Festival to take place in New York Dec. 3-4
NEW YORK, Nov 15 (APP): A film festival, the first-ever in the United States showcasing top-rated Pakistani movies, will be held in New York from December 3-4, organized by the Permanent Mission of Pakistan to the United Nations, it was announced Tuesday.
The venue for the Pakistan Film Festival will be the prestigious Asia Society, New York.
During two days, audiences will be shown some of the finest films coming out of Pakistan at a time when cinema is undergoing an extraordinary revival in the country.
The films include two brand new ones, which will premiere in New York, Dobara Pher Say and Lahore Say Agay. Others will include Actor in law, Pakistan’s Oscar nomination, Mahe Meer, Oscar award winner Sharmeen Obaid’s animated film, 3 Bahadur, Dukhtar, Dance Kahani and Ho Mann Jahan.
The Festival is part of the continuing effort by Pakistan’s UN Mission, led by Ambassador Maleeha Lodhi, to project the country’s soft power.
“Young film makers in Pakistan are producing an incredibly diverse and entertaining array of movies which are contributing to the cultural renaissance underway in the country which is also reflected in the profusion of creative voices found today in Pakistan’s art, music, literature and the media,” she said.
“We are bringing some of Pakistan’s movies to New York so that diplomats from 193 countries at the UN also have an opportunity to see what the country’s entertainment industry is producing,” she added.
The festival will kick off with a red carpet reception on Dec 2 at the United Nations where Ambassadors and representatives accredited to the UN will be invited, as well as members of the Pakistani diaspora, media and film buffs.
A number of celebrities from the film industry will also attend the Festival as well as directors and producers of some of the movies being featured.
Since assuming charge as Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to UN, Ambassador Lodhi has undertaken several cultural projects and organized a series of events to promote Pakistan’s soft image and highlight its modern and vibrant culture but also its ancient civilizational roots.
The Pakistan Mission, under her leadership, organized a “Sufi Night” at the UN General Assembly hall to mark Pakistan Day earlier this year featuring Rahat Fateh Ali Khan.
She also organized an Exhibition of Contemporary Art from Pakistan at the UN, which showcased some of the best works of art to demonstrate how Pakistan is becoming a powerhouse of creativity. She was also instrumental in bringing the Lahore Literary Festival to the Asia Society in New York.
“Cultural diplomacy is an essential part of a diplomat’s job aimed at winning hearts and minds”, Ambassador Lodhi says, adding that “Pakistan has much to offer the world in this regard, and our responsibility is to take this to the international arena.”
Pakistan has maintained lowest petroleum prices in South Asia:Dar
ISLAMABAD, Nov 15 (APP): Minister for Finance Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar here on Tuesday said Pakistan has maintained the lowest prices of petroleum products in comparison to the rest of South Asia, particularly India and Bangladesh.
He stated this while chairing a meeting here with Federal Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, where they reviewed the progress of different initiatives relating to Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources.
The Finance Minister said that under the advice of the prime minister, the finance ministry was providing maximum relief to the end consumers.
He urged the Petroleum Ministry to focus on discovery of new fields so that the burden on national exchequer could be reduced on oil imports.
The petroleum minister appreciated the stability maintained in oil prices for the benefit of the end consumers.
He also discussed with the finance minister the overall gas supply situation in the country.
He said that during winters the usage of natural gas by the domestic consumers goes up and his ministry will make every effort to maintain the pressure of the gas supply for domestic as well as industrial consumers.
He also informed the finance minister that petroleum ministry is encouraging investment for new discoveries of oil and gas to ease the supply situation in the country.
The meeting was attended by senior officials of ministries of finance and petroleum and natural resources.
He stated this while chairing a meeting here with Federal Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, where they reviewed the progress of different initiatives relating to Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources.
The Finance Minister said that under the advice of the prime minister, the finance ministry was providing maximum relief to the end consumers.
He urged the Petroleum Ministry to focus on discovery of new fields so that the burden on national exchequer could be reduced on oil imports.
The petroleum minister appreciated the stability maintained in oil prices for the benefit of the end consumers.
He also discussed with the finance minister the overall gas supply situation in the country.
He said that during winters the usage of natural gas by the domestic consumers goes up and his ministry will make every effort to maintain the pressure of the gas supply for domestic as well as industrial consumers.
He also informed the finance minister that petroleum ministry is encouraging investment for new discoveries of oil and gas to ease the supply situation in the country.
The meeting was attended by senior officials of ministries of finance and petroleum and natural resources.
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