UK aid is committing £175 million package to protect one billion people from impact of extreme weather

The UK Government is co-creating a global partnership to help protect one billion people in developing countries from the impact of extreme weather events, International Development Secretary Alok Sharma announced.

The Risk-Informed Early Action Partnership will help ensure the world’s poorest people receive earlier warnings of potential disasters such as typhoon and hurricanes – and are better prepared to deal with their effects.

“Climate change is one of the greatest challenges the world is facing, and the world’s poorest will be the worst hit. Early warning systems save lives. Helping developing countries to protect against the impact of extreme weather will ensure that the world’s poorest are better able to cope with disasters in the future,” said International Development Secretary Alok Sharma.

Working with countries across the world and organisations like the UK Met Office and International Federation of the Red Cross and Crescent, the Partnership will improve the availability and quality of weather forecasting information available.

Better information and early warning systems will give people more time to adapt and prepare for extreme weather events, making them easier to predict.

The Partnership will also help the governments of developing countries to make detailed action plans for natural disasters, including ensuring survivors are safe and have access to food, water and shelter.

At the UN in New York, both the UK and Egypt called for urgent global action to help the world adapt to the effects of climate change.

The UK is also leading the charge to make infrastructure more resilient to climate change. Working with Jamaica, insurance company Willis Towers Watson, and the World Economic Forum the UK has brought together organisations to ensure that we work to make buildings, roads, bridges and transport networks fit to withstand climate shocks.

The UK commitment is made up of:

• £85 million through the Risk-Informed Early Action Partnership, a new global partnership of governments and humanitarian and climate experts to help protect one billion people from disaster.
• £90 million to the Global Risk Financing Facility. Co-funded by Germany and delivered by the World Bank, it will use financing services such as insurance to help governments and humanitarian agencies access funding more quickly to support a faster, more effective response in emergencies.

Original source: DFID
Published on 22 September 2019