Source: UNISDR Disaster Risk Reduction
Modelled costs indicate that global annual average losses to infrastructure exceed $700 billion, with lower-income countries 1disproportionately affected. These losses frequently erase development gains, undermining long-term progress.
Strengthening the resilience of infrastructure is essential to achieving the objectives of the Sendai Framework-particularly Target D-and the Sustainable Development Goals. Societies depend on the continuous, effective functioning of infrastructure to deliver public services, improve living conditions and support economic development.
Yet, further action is needed to ensure that at least critical infrastructure-and ideally all infrastructure-is resilient to risks, adaptable to shocks such as climate change, and sustainable over time.
To support countries in advancing infrastructure resilience, the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), in partnership with the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI), has developed an innovative approach, rolled out in about 10 countries over the past two years.
Key impacts
Through this initiative, UNDRR has enabled countries to:
- Identify gaps in institutional arrangements and regulatory frameworks across sectors such as transport, energy, water and telecommunications.
- Stress test and analyze vulnerabilities in infrastructure systems, including through the use of satellite imagery and other geo-localized data.
- Benchmark national infrastructure practices against international references such as the Principles for Resilient Infrastructure.
- Develop national roadmaps that incorporate resilience throughout the infrastructure lifecycle-from planning to construction and operation.
This process strengthens governance mechanisms by convening infrastructure stakeholders across sectors to use data and risk analytics for informed decision-making on resilient infrastructure.
Country examples
- Tonga: Following a detailed assessment of the water sector, the government is now building the capacity of village water committees to prepare emergency plans, improve water security, and establish monitoring systems for groundwater levels to safeguard freshwater resources.
- Chile: Stress testing by UNDRR has led SENAPRED-the national disaster prevention and response agency-to recognize water scarcity and drought as critical emerging risks and to enhance institutional capacity to address them.
- Bhutan: Support from UNDRR and CDRI has contributed to strategic resilience measures being incorporated into sectoral action plans aligned with the 13th Five-Year Strategic Plan, embedding resilience within national infrastructure policy.
- Madagascar: After identifying regulatory gaps in energy and telecommunications sectors, the government is reviewing its frameworks and considering new resilience standards.
- Costa Rica and Panama: In Costa Rica, collaboration with UNDRR has resulted in the development of a data platform to inform infrastructure investments. In Panama, the government is revising procurement processes and planning the establishment of an infrastructure resilience commission.
Lessons learned for replication and adaptation
- Enhance cross-sectoral collaboration: Infrastructure resilience requires integrated governance across sectors to manage interdependencies and cascading risks. This includes establishing inter-agency platforms, as seen in Madagascar and Panama.
- Engage stakeholders: Effective resilience-building necessitates the involvement of private sector and civil society actors alongside public institutions.
- Foster partnerships and knowledge exchange: National DRR strategies should promote collaboration with technical partners, including UNDRR, to leverage expertise and innovation.
- Prioritise resilience in DRR strategies: Resilient infrastructure should be a core component of national DRR strategies across water, energy, transport and telecommunications sectors.
- Align with national development planning: Resilience measures should be embedded in national development plans, as exemplified by Bhutan’s five-year strategy.
- Update regulatory and procurement frameworks: National frameworks should be revised to integrate resilience standards, ensuring effective implementation.
- Leverage data and tools: Develop data platforms and analytical tools to enable risk-informed planning and decision-making, as demonstrated in Costa Rica.
- Support local capacity: Empower local actors, such as Tonga’s village water committees, to contribute meaningfully to infrastructure resilience.
- Monitor progress: Establish monitoring frameworks to assess and review resilience outcomes, supporting continuous improvement in infrastructure governance.