The United Nations has urged Fiji to increase investment in disaster prevention, warning that Pacific nations lose billions each year by spending too little on resilience.

At an event marking the International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction in Suva, UN Resident Coordinator Dirk Wagener said disasters in the Pacific are not just acts of nature, but the result of planning and investment choices.

“A single cyclone can wipe out decades of progress in one night. Yet most Pacific governments spend less than one percent of their national budgets on disaster risk reduction.”

Wagener highlighted that disasters cost Pacific Island countries over US$1.1 billion annually, with Fiji losing an average of FJ$79 million each year, 2.6 percent of its GDP. A severe event could cause damage worth FJ$845 million, or nearly one-third of the economy.

He praised countries like Tonga for pioneering financial protection through insurance and social systems that deliver quick cash support after disasters. Wagener called on all Pacific nations to develop national disaster risk financing strategies so every investment is risk-informed and resilient.

Head of the UNDRR Pacific Subregional Office Gabrielle Emery echoed the warning, saying Fiji and other Pacific nations are at “ground zero of the climate crisis,” facing multiple hazards.

“Protecting our people today is cheaper, safer and smarter than rebuilding tomorrow.”

She added that Fiji has made progress by including climate and disaster risk in its Climate Change Act and Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act, but greater funding is now needed.

The UN is working with Fiji’s government, civil society, and the private sector to expand access to innovative financing, insurance coverage, and early warning systems, including a FJ$25 million investment recently secured to strengthen people-centred alerts across the country.

Stream the best of Fiji on VITI+. Anytime. Anywhere.