Asian Development Blog

Flash floods are getting more frequent and growing in intensity in many parts of Asia. Photo: Ny Menghor

Here’s How Governments Can Reduce the Impacts of Asia’s Devastating Flash Floods

Flash floods have increased and become more unpredictable, and their toll on lives and livelihoods is growing as well. There is much we still don’t know about how to manage floods, but there are key policy actions we can take now.

Rabindra P. Osti

Despite tightened budgets due to the pandemic response, governments need to continue addressing climate change. Photo: Bianca Benini

Can Swapping Debt for Climate Action Help with Pandemic Recovery?

COVID-19 has triggered interest in swapping national debt for action on climate change adaptation.

Preety Bhandari

Lessons learned in flood control management and other disaster response are useful in the fight against COVID-19. Photo: Jonathan Ford

Flood Risk and Public Health: An Unlikely Partnership in the Fight Against COVID-19

It is time to establish partnerships and expand to a whole-of-society approach to cope with the disasters and crises that are increasingly threatening developing countries.

Xueliang Cai, Rabindra P. Osti

Innovative new approaches are needed to address the risks associated with flooding in Asia and the Pacific. Photo: ADB

Exploring New Ways to Manage the Devastation Caused by Floods

In many countries, new approaches to flood management are replacing traditional reactive measures.

Rabindra P. Osti

Business interruption insurance can keep small business afloat despite catastrophic losses. Photo: Yosh Ginsu

How Businesses Can Stay Alive When Struck by Disaster

Business interruption insurance is an essential tool for business continuity. How small and medium-sized enterprises handle post-disaster disruption could be the difference between reopening their doors or closing them for good.

Arup Kumar Chatterjee

The poor struggle to maintain social distancing when seeking assistance during the pandemic. Photo: ADB

The Pandemic Combined with Climate Change is Hitting the Poor Hard

The global response to COVID-19 should also be a springboard for action on climate change resilience so we can narrow the divide between rich and poor and keep everyone safe.

Nathan Rive

The climate crisis was already well underway before the COVID-19 pandemic struck.

The Response to COVID-19 Should Also Be a Response to the Climate Crisis

Now is the time to ramp up actions on resilience so that society can beat the COVID-19 crisis while reducing the impact of climate threats.

Preety Bhandari, Arghya Sinha Roy

When natural hazards, such as severe storms, strike Pacific islands during a pandemic, a dual threat is created that challenges leaders and planners. Photo: Trevor McKinnon

Dual Threat in the Pacific: COVID-19 and Natural Hazards

The pandemic demonstrates that disasters are triggered by multidimensional risks and hazards, and that a country’s approach to urban resilience needs to be multifaceted.

Anupma Jain