Norway to support Pakistan's National Disaster Risk Management Fund
Wednesday, 15/01/2020 14:56 (GMT+7)
(CPV) - ADB and the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Pakistan signed an agreement today to expand support for the National Disaster Risk Management Fund (NDRMF), further strengthening financing for natural disaster risk reduction and preparedness in the country.
Under the agreement, the Government of Norway will provide USD5 million to NDRMF from the unused resources of the Pakistan Earthquake Fund. Norway’s assistance for NDRMF will be administered by ADB. The Secretary of Pakistan’s Economic Affairs Division Mr. Syed Pervaiz Abbas, Ambassador of Norway to Pakistan Mr. Kjell-Gunnar Eriksen, and the Director General of ADB’s Strategy, Policy, and Partnerships Department Mr. Tomoyuki Kimura signed the agreement.
Protection bund built under the ADB-funded Flood Reconstruction and Resilience Project at Jehlum, which is a major tributary of the Indus River. (Source: ADB)
NDRMF was approved in 2016 to provide support in the immediate aftermath of disasters and to invest in disaster mitigation projects in Pakistan. ADB provided the initial financing through a USD200 million loan while the Government of Australia contributed a USD3.4 million grant. In 2018, the Swiss Agency for Development provided a USD1.5 million grant and technical assistance via the secondment of disaster risk finance experts.
NDRMF is currently fully operational, financing up to 70% of the cost of eligible projects that enhance Pakistan’s resilience to climate change and other natural hazards. It is structured as a nonprofit, government-owned company incorporated with the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan.
In the last 15 years, Pakistan lost 85,000 people—including more than 26,000 children— and suffered substantial economic losses due to various natural disasters. The government as well as the affected people had limited capacity and resources to recover. NDRMF was established to finance projects aimed at mitigating disaster risks, while also developing and piloting disaster risk financing instruments in Pakistan for fiscal risk transfer.
Norway has offered significant financial and technical support to Pakistan including in good governance, education, health, and emergency assistance. Norway worked with ADB and other partners to help Pakistan swiftly rebuild and recover from the 2005 earthquake. Following the heavy floods which devastated large parts of Pakistan in 2010 and 2011, Norway provided more than USD56.4 million in aid for flood-affected families and to restore basic services./.
Khac Kien