WB creates international consortium to reduce costs of natural disasters in developing world

A new international consortium designed to reduce the human and economic costs of natural disasters in the developing world was launched Wednesday by the World Bank and an international coalition of governments, international organizations, private insurance companies, universities, and non-governmental organizations.

The aim of the "ProVention Consortium" is to give developing countries the means to better cope with natural disasters such as earthquakes, hurricanes and floods, and reduce the loss of life and destruction they cause.

In 1998, natural disasters killed more than 50,000 people and destroyed $65 billion worth of property and infrastructure.

Some 95% of disaster-related deaths occurred in developing countries, where the poorest of the poor are the most affected. The World Bank has lent more than $19 billion for post-disaster reconstruction over the last 20 years, often more than once to the same country after successive disasters.