The Asian Development Bank (ADB) today announced a new financing partnership facility, established with the Government of Japan as an initial financing partner, to help ADB developing member countries (DMCs) strengthen disaster resilience and regional cooperation.
According to a Report correspondent from Samarkand, this initiative was presented at the 59th Annual Meeting of the ADB Board of Governors.
The Pre-Arranged Resources for Enhancing Preparedness and Resilience financing partnership facility (PREPARE) will be administered by ADB. It will include a Pacific Trust Fund (P-PREPARE) with an initial contribution of $2.9 million from Japan. PREPARE is ADB's first financing partnership facility focusing on disaster risk finance (DRF). It will be an overarching platform to enable collective action while accommodating diverse risk profiles and institutional capacities across DMCs and amplifying subregional efforts.
"As part of the PREPARE facility, P-PREPARE will provide crucial support for Pacific countries to proactively manage disaster risk and build financial preparedness, helping ensure timely, reliable, and sustainable funding for disaster response and recovery," said ADB Director General for the Pacific Emma Veve. "It will help strengthen regional cooperation by building shared systems that advance resilience, economic growth, and regional security."
P-PREPARE will fund capacity-building activities in data analytics, improve affordability and alignment of DRF instruments, and support the development of DRF strategies and innovative financing solutions across Pacific countries. The fund will also provide targeted support for the Pacific Catastrophe Risk Insurance Company, a regional disaster risk insurance provider owned by Pacific countries, to boost financial resilience by enabling rapid insurance payouts during disasters.