
Global leaders call for tenfold increase in pre-arranged crisis finance to combat escalating climate change impacts.
In a month that has seen wildfires devastate Greater Los Angeles, Storm Eowyn wreak havoc in the UK, and Florida getting more snowfall than Alaska, global leaders are calling for a transformative shift in crisis financing. The High-Level Panel on Closing the Crisis Protection Gap has released a report urging a tenfold increase in pre-arranged crisis finance by 2035 to tackle mounting global shocks.
In 2022, only 2% of the $76 billion in crisis finance was pre-arranged, with just 1.4% reaching low-income countries – less than $1 in every $5,000.
“In a world where risks can be modelled with ever greater precision, we should not wait to react until a crisis occurs,” said co-chair of the High-Level Panel Sir Mark Lowcock. “Nor can millions of people in vulnerable communities be left dependent on underfunded, ad hoc financial appeals where more effective financing instruments exist.”
The report includes ten recommendations targeting governments, international financial institutions, insurers, and civil society, aiming to make pre-arranged funding the norm for predictable disasters. With annual global economic losses from unmitigated climate change projected to reach $7–38 trillion by 2050, the panel stresses the urgency of leveraging capital markets to transfer risks from public balance sheets.
Arunma Oteh, co-chair of the Panel, highlighted the inefficiency of current reactive funding. “Reactive funding is too slow, too costly, and leaves the world needlessly exposed. Prearranged finance must become the default for all predictable and modellable crises.”
The report stresses prioritising the least developed countries and small island states, which are disproportionately vulnerable.
The Panel’s recommendations present a roadmap to future-proof the global response to disasters, urging bold commitments to shift from ad hoc appeals to smarter, pre-arranged funding mechanisms. Without decisive action, the human and economic toll will continue to escalate, leaving vulnerable communities exposed to the increasing risks of climate change.