Model for effective disaster financing strategies proposed

The Asian Development Bank has proposed a risk-layered structure to stimulate, develop and implement financially sustainable and scalable disaster risk financing strategies and solutions to enhance the enabling environment for epidemic and pandemic risk financing. The ‘Country Diagnostics Assessment: The Enabling Environment for Epidemic and Pandemic Risk Financing in Pakistan’ report says the coronavirus disease pandemic tested Pakistan’s financing capacity, resulting in a long-lasting and severe impact on the economy, including medical costs, lower productivity and unemployment during lockdowns, and trade and supply chain interruptions. As such, governments and businesses need to prepare financially for pandemics and epidemics in ways similar to that for extreme weather or geophysical events, suggests the report, made available to Dawn on Wednesday.