Understanding the Economic and Financial Impacts of Natural Disasters
The study described here examines the short- and long-term economic, and financial impacts of natural disasters. It relies in part, on in-depth case studies of overall sensitivity to natural hazards in the small island economy of Dominica; public f...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Publication |
| Language: | English en_US |
| Published: |
Washington, DC: World Bank
2013
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2004/03/3209743/understanding-economic-financial-impacts-natural-disasters http://hdl.handle.net/10986/15025 |
| Summary: | The study described here examines the
short- and long-term economic, and financial impacts of
natural disasters. It relies in part, on in-depth case
studies of overall sensitivity to natural hazards in the
small island economy of Dominica; public finance
consequences of disasters in Bangladesh; and, the economic
consequences of climatic variability, and the use of
climatic forecasting in Malawi and southern Africa. Policy
implications are drawn, and, where appropriate,
recommendations are made. Finally, directions for future
research, and cooperation are outlined. Major natural
disasters can, and do have severe
negativeshort-run economic impacts, and also
appear to have adverse longer-term consequences for economic
growth, development, and poverty reduction. But negative
impacts are not inevitable. A full reassessment of the
economic, and financial impacts of a major disaster, should
be made 18 to 24 months after the event. It should be taken
into account in reviewing the affected country's
short-term economic performance, and the assistance strategy
for the country. Vulnerability to natural hazards is
determined by a complex, dynamic set of influences that
include the country's economic structure, stage of
development, and prevailing economic and policy conditions.
The eclectic approach adopted in this study, which employed
largely qualitative methods, is particularly useful in
exploring the many complex, and dynamic pathways through
which extreme hazard events influence an economy, and its
financial system, as well as for identifying areas, and
issues where further investigation, including
quantification, would be worthwhile. |
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