Nations pledge to build disaster resilience into development plans

In order to build communities' and countries' resilience, it is critical to build disaster risk redcution and climate change adaptation into the development agenda, stated officials at the World Bank/International Monetary Fund Spring Meetings, as reported by the Daily Observer.

“We have too often witnessed how disasters can roll back years of development progress. On top of that, we now need to prepare for a changing world — rapid urbanization and a changing climate are reshaping and exacerbating disaster risks,” he added. But geography need not be destiny, and the future — however uncertain and unpredictable when we factor in the impact of climate change – need not be feared if correct preventive policies are taken today,” said Mahmoud Mohieldin, World Bank managing director.

However, he warned: "In the second half of the century, we are looking at a ten-fold increase in the frequency of severe heat events. The most extreme heat waves that we currently experience only once a decade will become annual events.”