Spending for disaster risk reduction halved in 2022

MANILA, Philippines — The government’s total disaster risk reduction (DRR) expenditure declined by 52.4 percent in 2022, with spending for three out of four thematic areas registering decreases, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

Data released by the PSA yesterday showed the total DRR spending amounted to P315.89 billion, down from P663.66 billion in 2021.

The share of DRR expenditures to the country’s gross domestic product also slid to 1.4 percent last year from 3.4 percent.

DRR expenditures cover activities aimed at preserving and protecting society, the economy and the environment from disasters.

“DRR expenditure accounts allow us to monitor the resources allocated to DRR and demonstrate how investing in DRR saves lives and resources from a cost-benefit economic point of view,” the PSA said.

Of the four thematic areas for DRR activities, disaster mitigation accounted for the highest expenditure amounting to P107.97 billion.

This is 64.5 percent higher than the P65.63 billion spent in 2021 for measures to lessen disaster risk, such as structural interventions and construction, land use planning and early warning systems.

Disaster prevention, which includes activities and measures to avoid existing and new disasters, got the second largest share in total DRR expenditure at 24.7 percent or P77.98 billion. This is 50.4 percent lower than the P157.26 billion in 2021.

Disaster management expenditure came in next with a 23.9 percent share of total DRR spending or P75.65 billion.

Spending for disaster management,  which includes preparedness, emergency management, emergency supply of commodities and other disaster responses,  fell by 57.4 percent from P177.52 billion, which was the highest recorded expenditure since 2015.

Disaster recovery expenditure, which includes relocation, rehabilitation and reconstruction, dropped by 79.3 percent to P54.29 billion.

Oikonomia Research and Advisory Inc. president and chief economist John Paolo Rivera said in an email that there were relatively more disasters and risks to deal with in 2021 than in 2022, which may explain the decline in DRR spending last year.

He said spending on research, innovation, risk-mitigation and prevention, however, could have augmented DRR expenditure ln 2022.

“Government should not only spend when risk is on hand, but also to avoid impending risks. Spending doesn’t need to be done only during times of crisis,” he said.