WorldRiskReport 2022: Focus: Digitalization

The WorldRiskIndex 2022 assesses the disaster risk for 193 countries. This covers all UN-recognized countries and over 99 percent of the world's population. With this year's focus on digitalization, the report highlights changes brought about by digital technologies in disaster preparedness and response, as well as associated risks. Digitalization has significantly changed disaster preparedness and management. Information and communication technologies (ICT) are used in all phases of disaster management for knowledge acquisition, information dissemination, communication, as well as control. Examples include the use of global databases for risk analysis, digital early warning systems, apps for recording damage, and communication with those affected via social media platforms.

Some key findings of the report include:

• The countries with the highest disaster risk worldwide are the Philippines (WRI 46.82), India (WRI 42.31), and Indonesia (WRI 41.46).
• Nine of the 15 countries with the highest disaster risk are among the 15 most populous countries in the world.
• Many island states are no longer at the top of the risk ranking due to this year’s recalculation of the WorldRiskIndex. This is partly because now both absolute and percentage figures of the population at risk are included in the calculation. This avoids a distortion due to population size.
• China has the highest exposure, followed by Mexico and Japan. The most vulnerable country in the world is Somalia, followed by Chad and South Sudan.
• The examples of South Korea, Italy, and Greece illustrate the principle that low or very low vulnerability can reduce disaster risk even when exposure is very high. However, the examples of DR Congo, Nigeria, Sudan, and Iraq show that very high vulnerability can lead to high disaster risk even with medium exposure.
• The Americas is the continent with the highest disaster risk. Asia is in second place, followed by Africa and closely after that Oceania. Europe has by far the lowest risk in a global comparison.
• The continent with the highest overall vulnerability is Africa. 13 of the 15 most vulnerable countries in the world are located there.