Serbia: Digital Disaster Risk Register links geospatial data to risk-informed planning and investment

This case study was collected through a Call for Good Practices on Reducing Risk across SDG Transitions, launched by the UN DRR Focal Points Group in 2024.

SDGs addressed: 13 | 11 | 9 (digital transformation theme)

Frequent droughts, floods and landslides cost Serbia billions and undermine development. Fragmented data and siloed systems hampered risk-informed decisions. In 2019 the Sector for Emergency Management (SEM) and Republic Geodetic Authority (RGA)-with UNDP and EU support-began building a national Disaster Risk Register. Anchored in the Law on Disaster Risk Reduction and Emergency Management (2018) and powered by Serbia's Spatial Data Infrastructure, the Register went live in 2022 with layers on floods, landslides, earthquakes and forest fires. Ongoing upgrades add public-health risk and WHO's STAR data on hospitals. The open web GIS lets planners, investors and citizens visualise risk down to parcel level.

Innovation and Success factors

• Interoperable geospatial platform aligned with EU INSPIRE and UN-IGIF standards.
• Legal mandates for 12 ministries and data-holding agencies ensure continuous updates.
• Working Group model unites 15 data providers; SOPs standardise exchanges.
• Public transparency attracts insurers and investors looking for location-specific risk intel.

Key impacts

• Real-time data informs emergency response and local DRR plans in 136 municipalities.
• Risk-based urban planning-Register consulted for major infrastructure and housing permits.
• Private-sector uptake-insurers use layers to price premiums; banks factor risk into lending.
• Health-risk module linking hospital exposure and capacity under development with WHO.

Lessons learned for replication or adaptation

1. Institutional coherence first-legal obligations for data sharing overcome fragmentation.
2. Engage data owners early-build trust, standardise metadata and exchange services.
3. Open-data ethos boosts public trust and private investment.
4. Continuous upgrades keep the platform relevant (e.g., AI chatbot, multi-hazard forecasting).
5. Use existing budgets & systems to sustain hosting and maintenance.

Organisations involved

• Government leads: Ministry of Interior - Sector for Emergency Management (SEM); Republic Geodetic Authority (RGA)
• UN entities: UNDP (establishment & upgrades); WHO (health-risk module)
• Line ministries & agencies: Health; Agriculture; Mining & Energy; Construction, Transport & Infrastructure; Public Investments; Environment; Geological Survey; Water-management enterprises; Forestry enterprise
• Beneficiaries: National & local DRR authorities, planners, investors, insurers, and the public