Global disaster risk index 2024, by select country

According to a 2024 study, the Philippines was the country with the highest natural disaster risk in the world. The Pacific archipelago was given a disaster risk index (WRI) of 46.91, followed by Indonesia, with a disaster risk index of 41.13. In contrast, Monaco and Andorra had the lowest natural disaster risk worldwide that year, with a WRI of 0.18 and 0.28 respectively. The WRI index is calculated by considering how exposed countries are to natural disasters together with how vulnerable they are to them.

Natural disasters’ frequency

Since the century began, natural disasters have become more frequent. Every single year since 2013 has recorded more than 400 events. In 2023, 398 disasters were reported worldwide, a 15 percent increase compared to 2000. Considering that climate-related events are more common than geophysical ones (earthquakes, volcanic eruptions), accounting for roughly 80 percent of all natural disasters in 2023, the general upward trend can be mostly associated with climate change and its impact on weather patterns and phenomena.

The biggest natural disasters

The earthquake and subsequent tsunami that hit Japan in March 2011 was the costliest natural disaster around the world since 1980, with losses reaching 210 billion U.S. dollars. The Kobe earthquake from 1995 and the Sichuan earthquake from 2000 also rank among the costliest disasters on the past decades. Apart from earthquakes, hurricanes also tend to leave a considerable economic impact where they hit. Seven out of the ten biggest natural catastrophes, based on economic losses, were hurricanes, with Katrina, which hit the coasts of the U.S. in 2005, being the costliest.