Global Humanitarian Assistance: Pooled Funding Mechanisms and Large-Scale Disasters - Case Studies of Haiti and Pakistan

Over the last two decades there have been 7,837 natural disasters in over 200 countries. These disasters have cost US$1.6 trillion in damage and affected 4.4 billion people. The destruction and devastation that natural disasters cause cannot be underestimated.
Disasters can range in severity and the number of people that are affected can depend on various factors including the density of the population where the disaster occurs, the quality of existing infrastructure, the provision of basic social services and the speed of response.
Although many natural events such as earthquakes and tsunamis are currently almost impossible to predict, the areas of the world where they occur have been very well mapped out for risk of occurrence. Others, such as floods, cyclones and some droughts are regular, year on year. Preventing either of these from turning from events to disasters can be mitigated through effective planning, preparedness and infrastructure development.