Arab states explore new tool to strengthen resilience of critical infrastructure

The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) Regional Office for Arab States held an interactive regional session on resilient infrastructure today, bringing together national focal points for disaster risk reduction from across the Arab region.

The session was opened by the Chief of UNDRR's Regional Office for Arab States, Sandra Amalang, who welcomed participants, presented the agenda and highlighted the regional context, noting that infrastructure systems across the Arab region are increasingly interconnected and exposed to a growing range of risks.

Recent disasters have demonstrated how quickly infrastructure disruption can cascade into wider social and economic impacts. In Libya, for example, the 2023 floods and dam failures caused an estimated USD 19 billion in losses to buildings and infrastructure, while disrupting access to essential services, including water and electricity.
— Sandra Amalang, Chief, UNDRR Regional Office for Arab States

The session outlined what participants could expect: an introduction to a new tool and how it can support countries; how findings from the tool can inform policy and funding decisions; and how it can serve as an entry point for bringing together stakeholders across infrastructure planning and investment.

The technical part of the session emphasized that resilience is not only about protecting physical assets, but also about sustaining the essential services that communities depend on. Presenters noted that while some disaster losses are visible and immediate, a much larger share remains hidden from view. These invisible losses include economic shockwaves, eroded social networks, broken supply chains, a lasting legacy of anxiety and despair, losses in productivity, damage to sites of cultural significance, worsening inequality, loss of ecosystem services, disrupted education, severed connections between communities and lasting health effects.

The seven global targets of the Sendai Framework were also presented, along with the reminder that disasters are shaped by human decisions and vulnerabilities rather than being solely the result of natural hazards. Participants discussed how energy, transport and digital infrastructure, among other systems, depend on one another, meaning that a disruption to one can affect the functioning of others.

Participants were then introduced to the Global Methodology for Strengthening Infrastructure Resilience, a five-step approach designed to support countries in assessing infrastructure resilience, identifying vulnerabilities and strengthening planning and decision-making.

Examples were shared of the methodology's implementation in other countries, including a sector-specific deep dive that revealed gaps between capacities in main and outer regions, as well as a stress test that identified water scarcity and drought as emerging critical risks in Chile. These findings contributed to the allocation of additional resources to address identified vulnerabilities.

During the discussion, participants were asked which infrastructure sectors they consider a priority in disaster response, based on national experience, and which have proven most vulnerable due to their connections with other affected systems.

A participant from Tunisia shed light on the role of the Ministry of Equipment and Housing in protecting cities from floods, highlighting rising sea levels and prolonged periods of extreme heat as key risks affecting economic sectors. The discussion also touched on the use of nature-based solutions across the region to help minimize disaster risk, alongside the importance of coordination across ministries to protect cities.

Participants raised further questions about existing assessment tools and how the methodology could be applied in their national contexts, reflecting the importance of adapting infrastructure resilience approaches to national priorities, risks and institutional arrangements.

The session closed with thanks to all participants, marking the start of an ongoing dialogue between UNDRR and national focal points on strengthening infrastructure resilience across the region. Discussions will continue at the Second Arab Forum for Early Warning and Disaster Preparedness, taking place from 12–14 October 2026 in Tunis.