SEN. Loren Legarda said development programs should be based on resilience and sustainability against natural disasters, as the Philippines topped the World Risk Report for the third consecutive year.
The Philippines scored 46.86, the highest among 193 countries, topping the World Risk Index anew.
Legarda said the 2024 World Risk Report by the Institute for International Law of Peace and Armed Conflict at Ruhr University Bochum and the Bündnis Entwicklung Hilft “revealed a distressing reality.”
SEN. Lorna Regina ‘Loren” Legarda. File Photo
“We have long understood that the Philippines grapples with a daunting challenge due to our geographical location,” she said, noting the country’s location in the Pacific Ring of Fire made it vulnerable to typhoons, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
“Climate change has only exacerbated these risks, bringing more frequent and severe disasters that disproportionately affect our most vulnerable communities — those living in poverty, the elderly, children, and people with disabilities,” Legarda said.
“Development should reduce rather than produce risks to our society and our economy,” the senator added.
Legarda said that various laws she advocated, including the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act, the Climate Change Act, and the Pagasa Modernization Act, were meant to strengthen the country’s disaster risk reduction and management systems, as well as improve climate resilience.
“However, despite having the necessary laws, scientific data, and technology, the risk remains high if these measures are not properly implemented or followed by the people and local governments. Our resilience depends not only on laws and systems but on how well we implement them in practice,” Legarda said.
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