GENEVA, 23 July 2018 – The soaring rise in economic losses from extreme weather events fueled by climate change will be the focus of this year’s International Day for Disaster Reduction on October 13.

The Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Disaster Risk Reduction, Mami Mizutori, said today: “Economic losses from disasters in low and middle-income countries are undermining efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and deprive governments of funds to spend on health, education, social protection and other important public needs.

“Every year disasters cost the global economy an estimated US$ 520 billion, displacing millions of people and pushing many of them into poverty. Reducing economic losses from disasters has the power to transform lives and this will be the focus of this year’s International Day for Disaster Reduction on October 13, a day for celebrating success in managing disaster risk and focusing on challenges.

“This is the third year of the Sendai Seven Campaign which uses International Day for Disaster Reduction to draw attention to the seven targets of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 which was adopted as a global plan to reduce disaster losses by UN member states.

“Focusing on the economic losses resulting from extreme weather events and other hazards will help to bring home to policy makers and those in charge of major investments in critical infrastructure, the importance of ensuring that those investment decisions are risk-informed.

“If it’s not risk informed, it’s not sustainable. And if it’s not sustainable then it has a human cost. Those costs are evident in the chronic level of disaster displacement around the world. Last year an estimated 18 million people were displaced by extreme weather events.”