Support for regional disaster preparedness and disaster risk reduction financing

The session "Support for Regional Disaster Preparedness and Disaster Risk Reduction Financing" brought together political leaders, financial institutions, and resilience experts to explore how regional cooperation can enhance disaster preparedness and scale up investments in resilience. Speakers included Ms. Željana Zovko, Member of the European Parliament and Vice-Chair of the Intergroup on Resilience, Disaster Management and Civil Protection; Mr. Alessio Mammi, Regional Minister of the Emilia-Romagna Region and member of the CoR; Ms. Konstantina Karydi, Managing Director of Resilient Cities Catalyst Europe; and Ms. Monica Scatasta, Head of the Regional Development Division at the European Investment Bank (EIB).

Moderated by Mr. Andrew Bower, Country Support Programme Manager at UNDRR's Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia, the 90-minute debate attracted a full room of participants from across Europe, highlighting growing attention to the financial dimension of resilience. The discussion also coincided with the International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction (IDDRR), reinforcing this year's global call to "Fund Resilience, Not Disasters."

The panel discussion brought together dynamic perspectives from diverse speakers. Ms. Zovko stressed that "Resilience is built by people. Investing in their skills, knowledge, and motivation, and ensuring they remain within our civil protection systems, must be at the heart of our efforts. This is especially important for the Western Balkans and EU candidate countries, where strengthening preparedness and response capacity depends on empowering people, not expanding bureaucracy. We must move towards de-bureaucratisation and deregulation, creating simple rules that allow local communities to access EU funds easily and act swiftly when crises strike. Only then can we build a Europe that is truly resilient and ready for the challenges ahead."

Drawing on recent experiences from the Emilia-Romagna floods in 2023, Mr. Mammi emphasized the need to rethink infrastructure and urban planning to withstand the increasing impacts of climate change. He underscored that prevention must be prioritized over recovery and that regions must integrate climate data and risk forecasting into development planning.

Ms. Karydi shared insights from Resilient Cities Catalyst and MCR2030, emphasizing that local and regional networks are key to translating political commitments into concrete resilience projects. She highlighted that while many cities are willing to act, they often lack the technical and human resources to do so effectively.
"While there is significant availability of capital, a reform of administrations at the subnational level must be coordinated to ensure that financing is effectively directed and that the whole of society resilience approach can be translated into lasting, cross-cutting programmes. Persistent silos and vertical planning are still in the way of effective prevention, " Ms. Karydi said.

Representing the European Investment Bank, Ms. Scatasta outlined how the EIB is strengthening its focus on resilience, disaster risk reduction and preparedness across Europe - including by doubling adaptation financing to EUR 30 billion in 2026-2030. She explained how well-tested financing solutions -such as framework loans that flexibly support investment programmes- coupled with more innovative solutions and technical advisory support can help regions combine EU funds and EIB financing to implement preparedness and resilience-oriented investments. More information is available on the EIB website at Regional development and cohesion.
"At EIB, we can finance disaster risk reduction, preparedness and resilience at scale. Our integrated advisory and financing solutions can respond to cities and regions' specific risk profiles, needs and capacity. Where resilience and preparedness are a priority, EIB can be part of the solution."

Participants engaged actively in the discussion, reflecting on the barriers to financing resilience at the local level, such as limited budgets, lack of technical and human capacity, and fragmented responsibilities across governance levels. The debate reinforced the shared understanding that investing in preparedness and prevention is both more cost-effective and socially sustainable than responding to disasters after they occur.

This session showed that resilience financing is not only a technical issue but a shared responsibility across political, financial, and local actors. Investing together today means saving lives and resources tomorrow.