The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has welcomed the announcement of Pakistan's first Anticipatory Action Strategy, marking a significant milestone in the country's efforts to strengthen disaster risk management and reduce the impact of climate-related hazards on vulnerable communities.
What Is Anticipatory Action?
Anticipatory action helps safeguard lives, livelihoods, and critical assets by using risk forecasts to trigger early funding and action before hazards strike. This approach marks a shift from responding to disasters to acting ahead of them to reduce their impact.
Building on Existing Initiatives
The national anticipatory action strategy builds on a joint initiative implemented by the WFP and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), with funding from the European Union (EU) in support of the Government of Pakistan. Through this initiative, a range of measures were introduced at national and sub-national levels to strengthen anticipatory action systems, including strengthening early warning systems, testing protocols, and integrating anticipatory approaches into government disaster risk management and development planning.
Official Endorsement
“Anticipatory actions need to be activated to reduce disaster risks and minimise humanitarian and economic losses,” said the Chairman of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), Lieutenant General Inam Haider Malik. “Timely preparedness, early warning dissemination, and a coordinated institutional response are essential to protect vulnerable communities from the increasing impacts of climate-induced hazards.”
Staggering Economic Losses
Climate-related disasters in Pakistan have caused over US$18 billion in damages over the two decades, rising to more than US$60 billion when major flood events in 2010, 2011, and 2022 are factored in. These figures underscore the urgent need for proactive measures like the Anticipatory Action Strategy.
