Unlocking the triple dividend of resilience: Why investing in DRM pays off

This document explains how investing in disaster risk management (DRM) can yield real benefits in the short and the long-term. It states that reducing disaster-related ‘background risk’ enables forward-looking planning, long-term capital investments, and entrepreneurship. In addition, and regardless of whether a disaster hits or not, it explains that DRM investments generate co-benefits as a result of the ‘spill-over’ of social, economic and environmental benefits arising from DRM investments themselves. These benefits are according to the authors due to the avoided loss and damage of a disaster.

Investing in disaster resilience, therefore, can yield a ‘triple dividend’ by (1) avoiding losses when disasters strike; (2) unlocking development potential by stimulating innovation and bolstering economic activity in a context of reduced disaster-related background risk for investment; and (3) through the synergies of the social, environment and economic co-benefits of disaster risk management investments even if a disaster does not happen for many years. Lastly, the document explains why not investing in DRM is a missed opportunity for social, economic and environmental progress.