Lloyd's Register Foundation report reveals that one third of people globally facing imminent financial ruin upon losing their income

LONDON, Oct. 3, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- A new report launched by a UK-based global safety charity has highlighted that people's ability to withstand the impact of climate change-related disasters is being undermined by a lack of financial resilience.

More than one third (34%) of people across the world said they could only cover their basic needs for less than a month if they lost all their income, including 12% who say they could only do so for less than a week.

The statistics come from the latest report from the Lloyd's Register Foundation World Risk Poll (WRP), powered by Gallup. 'A Resilient World? Understanding vulnerability in a changing climate' presents data from over 125,000 people in 121 countries, revealing how people feel their communities and their country's infrastructure and government can cope in the face of disasters.

The Poll found that 27% of the world's population has experienced a disaster in the past five years. Now, with climate change-related disasters increasing across the world, the Poll's findings highlight a need for policymakers to work together to ensure people are supported during a crisis.

Regions with better infrastructure and economic security typically score higher on the WRP Resilience Index. This tool calculates how equipped people around the world are to handle adversity, based on personal circumstances and perceptions of support.

According to the Resilience Index, the top scoring regions – Australia/New Zealand and Northern America – have better-developed infrastructure and higher levels of economic security. The least resilient region is Central/West Africa, –where people are also most likely to say they have experienced a disaster caused by flooding (17%).

However, findings show how lower-income regions are more resilient in some ways, such as having a higher sense of community support. While 23% of people worldwide believed their neighbours care about them 'a lot', this figure was higher among residents of low-income countries (35%) compared to high-income countries (20%).

When asked whether people have a plan that all family members know about in the face of a disaster, people in the Philippines (86%), Cambodia (81%) and Vietnam (70%) were most prepared. Seven of the 14 countries where more than half of people have a plan are in South-eastern Asia, one of the global regions most prone to natural hazards – partly explaining why the region bucks the global trend and scores highly on the Resilience Index, despite being primarily made up of lower-middle-income countries.

However, the data also reveals that those in low-income countries have lower confidence in their ability to protect themselves and their families from a disaster – only 40% say there is anything they could do, compared with 61% in high-income countries. This is linked with their satisfaction with local infrastructures. For example, 27% of people in low-income countries say they have internet access, compared to 91% in high-income countries.  People with internet access were more likely to say they could protect themselves in all country income groups.

Jenty Kirsch-Wood, Head of Global Risk Management and Reporting at the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction said: "We know from previous analysis that low-income countries have been hardest hit by disasters in recent years, with one in four people in these countries directly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic and other hazards. What's more, low-income and lower middle-income countries lose a greater share of their national GDP as a result of these disasters than their higher income peers – 0.8-1%, compared with 0.1% and 0.3% in high-income and upper middle-income countries, respectively.

"These experiences progressively degrade the ability of states and communities to rebuild and recover from shocks and contribute to the lack of confidence among people in low-income countries in their capacity to protect themselves in the event of a disaster that we see reflected in the Poll."

Dr Sarah Cumbers, Director of Evidence and Insight at Lloyd's Register Foundation, said:: ". While the Resilience Index shows us that those in higher income regions are typically more resilient to disasters, including those caused by climate change, it also highlights resilience strengths in other regions that can be learnt from and built on with appropriate investment.

"As the effects of climate change continue to make headlines, we need to invest in equitable resilience that protects people from severe weather and other hazards, no matter who they are or where they live. It is a critical vulnerability that so many people around the world would be left financially exposed in the event of a disaster, and so this report should prompt policymakers, development agencies and technical experts to work together to identify vulnerable communities and work with them to develop strategies to cope with large-scale hazards."

Download a copy of the report here