The latest report from the EM-DAT database on global disasters indicates that the scale of damage caused by natural hazards will remain high in 2025. A total of 358 disaster events were recorded, resulting in 16,607 deaths, affecting around 110 million people and causing economic losses of approximately 169.7 billion US dollars.
Asia was particularly hard hit, accounting for the majority of fatalities, including those caused by severe earthquakes in Myanmar and Afghanistan. At the same time, extreme weather events such as storms and floods, as well as prolonged droughts, dominated the global disaster landscape. It is striking that the impacts are not limited to individual major events, but arise from the cumulative effect of several events occurring simultaneously.
The report thus once again underscores the ongoing relevance of disaster preparedness and risk management. Despite the extent of damage being lower in some cases compared to the long-term average, the global burden of natural hazards remains high and highlights the need for long-term strategies to strengthen resilience and adaptability.
You can find the report here.
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