India ‘special case’ in disasters

India is likely to have the highest number of people living in poverty by 2030 and among the greatest exposure to extreme weather and natural disasters, but it is rare among developing nations facing climate hazards, because its national government has the capacity to manage disaster risk, according to a joint UK Met Office-ODI report published this week, reports the Wall Street Journal

In the Journal's Q & A with the Tom Mitchell, ODI's head of program for climate management, he says of the report: 'What we wanted to do with this report was to see to what extent those likely to be living in poverty in 2030 based on a business as usual [scenario] are also exposed to natural hazards. It is simply overlaying poverty projections with projections of natural hazards. The reason we wanted to do that is because we have good evidence to suggest that the disasters cause reversals in progress in reducing poverty.'

When asked: What measures can governments and international aid agencies take in order to mitigate or reduce the impact?, Mitchell speaks to a need for focus on resilient infrastructure - including schools, hospitals and roads, in addition to understanding sustainable recovery.