Investing in disaster risk reduction and disaster resilience, strengthening financial protection and improving institutional preparedness makes economic sense.

Europe faces overwhelming losses and destruction from climate-related disasters as the continent is warming faster than any other region in the world

2023 was the hottest year on record with disasters across Europe totaling more than €77 billion
2023 wildfires estimates of direct damage were equivalent to €2 billion in Greece, €1 billion in Italy, and around €913 million in Spain.
Wildfire response accounts for over one-third of response costs in the Union Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM) budget.
Under a 3°C warming scenario, economic losses are projected to increase to around €175 billion, or 1.38% of EU GDP.

There is an urgent need for Europe to adapt to the increasing frequency and intensity of climate extremes, as it warms faster than any other region globally. The economic losses from climate-related events are predicted to rise significantly, impacting communities and economies.

Disasters can have devastating physical, social, and financial effects. In the past decade, Europe has seen major floods and earthquakes, while images of people seeking relief from record-breaking heatwaves are becoming commonplace. Between 1980 and 2020, natural disasters affected nearly 50 million people in the European Union and caused on average an economic loss of €12 billion per year. Intensity and frequency of disasters is expected to grow as a result of climate change.

Reports from 2021 study

The report series is a follow-up to the successful collaboration between the Commission and the World Bank in 2020-2021, which resulted in a study and reports that demonstrated the economic value of investing in disaster resilience, enhanced financial preparedness, and capacity-building. Reports with findings from this first phase of the study are listed here below.

Understanding the Needs of Civil Protection Agencies and Opportunities for Scaling up Disaster Risk Management Investments

Investment in Disaster Risk Management in Europe Makes Economic Sense

Financial Risk and Opportunities to Build Resilience in Europe

Training material

In addition to the reports, DG ECHO, with the assistance of the World Bank, offers training material that draws on the findings of the study.

E-learning course

Developed by DG ECHO, an online eLearning course is available with open access on the EU Academy. The 1-hour self-paced course focuses on the risk landscape of the EU and the positive effects of disaster prevention and preparedness

Online workshop series

This series of 3 training modules (120 min each) explore the analytical methods applied in the study. You hear the experts involved providing more background of the study and its findings.