ABOUT DRRRF

The Global Bank Disaster Risk Reduction and Reconstruction Fund – An Umbrella Trust Fund (the “Trust Fund,” “GB-DRRRF,” or “DRRRF”) established in October 2017, as a Global Bank Group-supported partnership of donor and recipient countries and international organizations. Created to reduce the risks from natural disasters and promote international and regional cooperation to lessen the vulnerability of developed and developing countries alike, the DRRRF supports on-the-ground technical assistance to help developed, and developing countries integrate disaster risk management (DRM) and climate change adaptation into development strategies, policies and investment programs, including post-disaster recovery and reconstruction.

The Global Bank Disaster Risk Reduction and Reconstruction Fund – An Umbrella Trust Fund is working to build resilience in vulnerable communities around the globe. The DRRRF is a multi-donor partnership and grant-making financing mechanism. Its purpose is mainstreaming climate change to help achieve the Sendai Framework targets by 2030 - a decade-long plan to help make the world safer from disasters caused by natural hazards — and to support the implementation of the Global Climate Agreement in Paris, and prevent disasters undermining progress on the Sustainable Development Goals. The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 (SFDRR), was adopted at the Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (WCDRR), held on March 14-18, 2015 in Sendai, Japan, and will guide action on disaster risk reduction worldwide for the next 15 years.

The Global Bank Disaster Risk Reduction and Reconstruction Fund has three main business lines to achieve its development objectives at the global, regional and country levels.

• Track I: Global and Regional Partnerships;

• Track II: Mainstreaming Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) in Development; and,

• Track III: Sustainable Disaster Recovery and Reconstruction of Communities.

The Global Bank Disaster Reduction and Reconstruction Fund – An Umbrella Trust Fund carries out a range of activities under the Climate Change Action Plan to achieve its mission, structured around eight pillars of action:

1. Support Transformational Policies and Institutions;

2. Leverage Resources;

3. Scale up Climate Action;

4. Align Internal Processes and Work with Others;

5. Disaster Risk Financing and Insurance (DRFI);

6. Climate-Smart Infrastructure 

7. Urban Resilience and,

8. Enhancing disaster preparedness for effective response, and to “Build Back Better” in recovery, rehabilitation, and reconstruction.

These initiatives allow the Global Bank Disaster Risk Reduction and Reconstruction Fund – An Umbrella Trust Fund to collaborate with a broad array of partners, facilitate global engagements and capacity building, and produce innovative knowledge. The DRRRF implements the majority of its activities in countries through the Global Bank, in partnership with national, regional, subregional, and other international agencies.

Examples of such thematic cross-cutting initiatives include: 

• DRRRF Innovation Lab for Climate Finance

DRRRF Innovation Lab for Climate Finance (The Lab): The Lab address barriers to finance in adaptation, sustainable agriculture, energy efficiency, renewable energy, disaster recovery and disaster risk insurance with innovative financial instrument that have the potential for scaling up financing for a low-carbon, climate-resilient economy. The DRRRF Innovation Lab for Climate Finance is a Global Bank-DRRRF initiative that identifies, develops, and launches cutting-edge climate finance instruments and works to improve efficiency and effectiveness of existing financial instruments and mechanisms. The Lab catalyzes this process by drawing on experience and expertise from within the Global Bank Group and from around the world to identify and pilot the next generation of climate finance instruments. Including more predictable, stable, flexible aid mechanisms (notably, trust funds and other flexible instruments that enable the Bank Group to engage in a wide range of climate-related partner­ships and leverage development assistance at the country, regional and global levels, including budget support, mitigation of exogenous shocks, and aid untying.

• The Puerto Rico Recovery Trust Fund (“PRRTF”)

In September 20017, the "monster" storm was the strongest to hit the US territory in nearly a century. Hurricane Maria caused widespread damage and destruction in Puerto Rico. On 25 September, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) estimated that the entire population suffered direct damage to housing and livelihoods. Food and water are the most urgent needs. People lack access to fresh running water due to damaged pipes in many parts of Puerto Rico. The hurricane also caused widespread damage to the power grid, leaving entire Puerto Rico without electricity. Communication towers on hilltops were snapped in two, causing a Puerto Rico-wide communications blackout. The cellular network has since been unreliable throughout Puerto Rico. The majority of the roads are blocked with debris, and many of the bridges are damaged.

The cost of rehabilitation and reconstruction of Puerto Rico is estimated at $95 billion. In response, the Global Bank Disaster Risk Reduction and Reconstruction Fund – An Umbrella Trust Fund will sponsor the establishment of the Puerto Rico Recovery Trust Fund (“PRRTF” or “the Fund”) to help meet a portion of the reconstruction fund requirements. The Fund’s role is to support the Action Plan for the Recovery and Development of Puerto Rico and other related initiatives. The project will constitute an integral and essential part of the Government of Puerto Rico's reconstruction efforts. The funded programs will complement other recovery, reconstruction and development activities supported by the development partners of Puerto Rico.

• The Global Bank Atlantic Reconstruction Trust Fund

The Global Bank Atlantic Reconstruction Trust Fund (the “Fund” or “GBARTF”) is a regional Standby Recovery Financing Facility (“SRFF” or the “Facility”) dedicated to the Atlantic Region. It will provide for rapid and predictable disaster recovery operations, as a complement to the existing international coordination and financing instruments of various multilateral and bilateral agencies for this purpose. It will also act as an incentive for all developed and developing countries to invest in ex-ante risk management and disaster mitigation initiatives. As currently envisioned, the Global Bank Disaster Risk Reduction and Reconstruction Fund – An Umbrella Trust Fund will be establishing similar trust funds for every world region of the in the upcoming years.

To learn more about the Global Bank Disaster Risk Reduction and Reconstruction Fund, what we do and How we do it and Management and Organisation, visit the About DRRRF and the Frequently Asked Questions Section of the DRRRF Website Section.

For information about the Global Bank, please visit http://www.global-bank.org