The risk of global economic losses from disasters is rising faster than the risk of deaths because countries have got better at preparing and responding but are still not thinking enough about how to reduce disasters in their planning and development activities, says a report from a United Nations body.

In 2005, 168 countries adopted the Hyogo Framework of Action (HFA), a set of five priorities for achieving a substantial reduction in disaster losses - both in terms of lives and social, economic and environmental assets - by 2015.

Reviews carried out over the past two years by 62 of those countries, around 40 percent, show mixed progress in cutting disaster risk, according to a report released on Sunday by the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR).

Countries have made significant advances in strengthening their systems, laws and capacities to prepare for and respond to disasters, it says. That includes giving people early warning of weather hazards, notably in some poor countries like Bangladesh and Cuba.

They have made big strides in reducing deaths from cyclones and floods by educating their populations about how to protect themselves and introducing practical measures such as evacuating people to shelters before storms hit.

But ISDR says governments have done little to integrate disaster risk reduction into social, economic, urban, environmental and infrastructure planning and development. This failure leaves houses, schools and other infrastructure exposed to damage and destruction, and explains why the risk of economic losses worldwide is growing at a much faster rate than the risk of death.

For example, between 1990 and 2007, the global mortality risk from flooding increased by 13 percent, whereas the risk of economic loss rose by 35 percent in absolute terms.

Measured as a proportion of the world's population and total gross domestic product - both of which have risen substantially in recent times - the percentage of people at risk is falling, while for economic assets the figures are flat.

"(The report) shows we need a radical shift in development practices and planning and, as a priority, merging disaster risk reduction, poverty reduction and climate change adaptation into a single, coherent and innovative approach," Margareta Wahlstrom, the U.N. assistant secretary-general for disaster risk reduction, said in a statement.

POOR STATES LAG BEHIND

The report says rich countries - including most European nations, the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Bahrain and the Cayman Islands - have done a better job at reducing disaster risk than low- and middle-income countries.

Some least-developed nations, mainly in Africa, lack the technical, human, institutional and financial capacities to tackle even the most basic aspects.

The report notes that small island developing states and land-locked developing countries account for 60 percent of nations considered to have high economic vulnerability to disasters, and 67 percent of nations with very high economic vulnerability.

It warns that middle-income countries also face a major challenge because many are experiencing rapid economic and urban growth, which is boosting their exposure to hazards fast. Often development is unregulated and organisations that normally coordinate disaster reduction efforts lack political authority and technical competence.

ISDR calls on governments and international institutions to think harder about how to reduce the risk of disasters when working on measures to reduce poverty and adapt to the effects of climate change.

For example, building a school in a poor community in a quake-prone country will improve children's access to education and help meet the U.N. Millennium Development Goals. But if the construction doesn't follow quake-resistant standards, the school could collapse in an earthquake, as happened last year in China where thousands of children and teachers died in the Sichuan quake.

The report argues that steps to cut the risk of disasters may seem costly but pay off in the longer-term.

For example, in Vietnam, a $1 million investment by the Red Cross in planting and protecting 12,000 hectares of mangroves reduced the cost of sea dyke maintenance by $7.3 million per year.

And in Peru, the finance ministry estimated that, for a 75 percent probability of disaster loss in 10 years, all public sector investments in reducing the risk of disasters were cost-effective, with the ratio of benefits to costs ranging from 1 to 37.5.

"Rather than an expense, investing in poverty and disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation should be seen as an investment in building a more secure, stable, sustainable and equitable future," said Wahlstrom.

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