Public financial management for disaster response and adaptive social protection in the Sahel

The report analyses how public financial management (PFM) systems in the Sahel can better support disaster response and adaptive social protection in a region highly vulnerable to climate shocks. It explores how governments plan, allocate, and use financial resources to respond to disasters, highlighting the importance of integrating disaster risk financing with social protection systems. It focuses on five countries and examines existing financing mechanisms such as budget reallocations, contingency funds, and insurance instruments, assessing how effectively they enable timely and scalable responses to climate-related crises.

The findings show that Sahel countries face major limitations in responding to disasters due to weak data systems, limited fiscal space, and insufficient integration of disaster risks into budgeting processes. As a result, governments struggle to anticipate costs, plan ahead, and deliver rapid support through social protection systems. It also highlights that financing for disaster response is often reactive and heavily dependent on external aid, while domestic financial instruments remain underdeveloped or poorly coordinated. Strengthening financial planning, improving transparency, and aligning disaster risk finance with adaptive social protection are key to building long-term resilience.