Latest additions to the knowledge base

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the northern parts of Oman were hit by exceptionally heavy rainfall causing massive disruption in infrastructure and public life in the area and leading to at least 20 fatalities in Oman and four in the UAE.

This seismic risk profile of Oman, produced by the Global Earthquake Model (GEM) Foundation summarizes key metrics of seismic risk, allowing stakeholders in risk management to get an overview of the risk in the country.

The focus of this week’s Manchester Briefing (Issue 38) is the role of the individual in relation to crises and the benefits of public involvement in emergency planning. We discuss how recovery reinstates preparedness, while renewal enhances resilience

A major tsunami in the northern Arabian Sea could severely impact the coastlines of India and Pakistan, which are studded with several nuclear plants.

24 countries bordering the Indian Ocean will engage in Exercise Indian Ocean Wave 2018, a large-scale tsunami exercise based on two scenarios. The exercises will give Indian Ocean countries an opportunity to test standard operating procedures, communication links between stakeholders, communities’ tsunami preparedness and evacuation procedures.

Hot summers are becoming a regular occurrence, but climate change could soon push an environment that is unsustainable for countries along the Arab Gulf and in North Africa, with temperatures exceeding the threshold for human survival. Climate change has also yielded increases in sea level and saltwater intrusion, affecting livelihoods.

The purpose of this publication is to detail lessons learned from UNDP’s Climate Change Adaptation work and achievements in the Arab region on achieving sustainable and lasting results. Some lessons include building local capacity at all levels to ensure

The first half of 2018 was fortunate in that natural disasters across the world caused significantly lower losses than usual. According to provisional figures, overall losses were around US$33bn, the lowest level since 2005. However, individual events did cause high losses for those concerned, and the second half of the year usually brings higher losses.