ESTAG webinar outcome brief: Financial incentives as a strategy for promoting disaster resilience

Despite the consistent attention paid to the need to mitigate disaster risks over the years, the impact and economic damages of disasters have grown continuously. Investments in disaster risk reduction (DRR) have not kept pace with the rapidly changing environment, and many economic and investment plans remain blind to disaster and climate-related risks. In addressing these challenges, incentivising and rewarding risk-informed local and national investments in resilient practices has been identified as a mechanism where risks can be transformed into opportunities supporting resilience building, including through utilising insurance instruments in this process. 

The International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction 2025 called for a decisive paradigm shift: fund resilience now to avoid paying for disasters later. In addressing these challenges, the European Scientific and Technical Advisory Group (E-STAG), supported by the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction - Regional Office for Europe & Central Asia, organised a session titled: Financial incentives as a strategy for promoting disaster resilience, on the 13th October 2025, under the theme "Fund Resilience, Not Disasters". This session provided a discussion, with a number of best practice examples, on exploring the use of financial incentives to enhance investments in disaster risk reduction and recovery and towards increased resilience. The main points and recommendations stemming from the discussion are outlined in the present outcome document.