According to United Nations Development Program, in the
last 20 years 4.4 billion people were affected and 1.3 million
people were killed by natural disasters resulting US$2 trillion
income losses. These numbers could be drastically lower if the
community?s vulnerability had been decreased by prevention,
mitigation and preparedness plans and actions before the
hazard stroke disaster-prone areas. The impacts of devastating
disasters in the last 10 years have been some of the largest on
record: Pakistan, Haiti, East Africa and Iran.
While natural hazards strike developed and developing
countries alike, developing countries are more vulnerable, with
risks exacerbated by population growth, rapid urbanization,
environmental degradation, and climate change. The human
toll is also severe, disproportionately hurting the poor who are
often without the benefit of safety nets. According to The
World Bank, damages in developing countries can add up to
more than 100% of GDP in small, fragile countries, straining
public finances and wiping out years of development progress.