EN    EN EN 
 
EN    EN  COMMISSION OF THE E UROPEAN COMMUNITIES 
Brussels, 23.2.2009 
SEC(2009) 218 
  
COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT 
Accompanying document to the 
 
EU STRATEGY FOR SUPPORTING DI SASTER RISK REDUCTION IN 
DEVELOPING OCUNTRIES 
  
SUMMARY OF THE IMPACT ASSESSMENT
  
  
{COM(2009) 84 final} 
{SEC(2009) 217} {SEC(2009) 220}
 
EN 2   EN 1. S UMMARY OF THE IMPACT ASSESSMENT  
Disasters undermine development and enda nger the achievement of the Millennium 
Development Goals (MDGs). Disasters associ ated with natural hazards are currently 
increasing both in frequency and intensity. Clim ate change may already be contributing to the 
increasing number and intensity of recent disa sters. Disasters hit de veloping countries and 
their populations hardest as they are the most vul nerable and have the least capacities to cope. 
Evidence has long suggested that disaster risk reduction (DRR) has a high ratio of  benefits to 
costs.  
The EU is the world's largest donor of Offici al Development Assistan ce and Humanitarian 
Aid. It has a global presen ce and wide experience with  individual DRR projects and 
programmes, but is lacking a strategic framew ork to guide its DRR support in developing 
countries in a coherent and c oordinated manner. Given the risk  disasters pose to development 
efforts and investments, the EU needs to assist  developing countries in their DRR efforts, as 
well as make its own development assistance both more disaster resilient and ensure that it also reduces vulnerability to hazards.  
This proportionate impact assessment has informed the Commission’s adoption of a 
communication on an EU Strategy for supportin g DRR in developing countries through both 
development cooperation and humanitarian aid,  to help support th e 2005 Hyogo Framework 
for Action
1 and the achievement of the MDGs.  
Both the strategy and the impact assessment ha ve been informed by and reflect the outcome 
of an open debate held between January  and December 2008 with key civil society 
organisations, UN agencies, developing countries , international financ ing institutions, EU 
Member States and the private sector. 
The impact assessment addresses the need for EU  action and the potential  added value of such 
action. It includes an assessmen t of three possible options:  
(1) a ‘no policy change’ scenario,  
(2) the development of an EC strategy fo r supporting DRR in developing countries, 
guiding European Community instruments only, and  
(3) the development of an EU strategy fo r supporting DRR in developing countries, 
serving as an overarching and comprehensive framework on DRR action for the EC and the EU Member States. 
looking in particular at their potential political, economic, soci al and environmental impacts.  
While each of the policy options could have be nefits with regard to DRR in developing 
countries, the impact assessment concludes that  for reasons of effec tiveness, coherence, 
consistency and proactiveness towards its pa rtners’ needs, the Co mmission should favour the 
third option which would be the best option to m eet real needs while at the same time being in 
line with existing EU commitments on DRR a nd international and EU commitments on aid 
effectiveness. In particular , an EU Strategy for supporting DRR in developing countries 
would aim to anticipate possible fragmentation and/or duplication of DRR efforts in the near 
future when the Commission and some ten Member  States scale up support  for DRR. It would 
                                                
 
1 Adopted in 2005 at the World Co nference on Disast er Reduction. 
 
EN 3   EN capitalise and build on existing strategic work done by the EC2 and Member States, as well as 
extensive experience of DRR programmes and pr ojects in all devel oping country regions.  
The desirability of action at EU level is thus explained by the following factors: 
• The European Consensus on Development and the European Consensus on 
Humanitarian Aid both commit the EU to  progress on EU policy and action on 
DRR. An EU strategy will foster joint und erstanding of priorities and areas where 
EU instruments can obtain the greatest impact. 
• The EU is the largest aid donor, but still needs to make progress with regard to 
effectiveness, efficiency and lower trans action costs. Closer EU collaboration on a 
common DRR framework will contribute to this and constitutes good policy and practice; collective EU action will be more efficient than actions taken by 
individual Member States and actions will better complement each other. 
• Making full strategic use of the various strengths of Commission and the Member 
States with regard to disaster risk re duction is fully in line with the Paris 
Declaration on Aid effectiveness and the EU Code of Conduct and Division of 
Labour. 
• EU partner countries will benefit from  more donor coordination (dealing with 
fewer donors, more consistent messages)  and possibly more significant support 
for DRR, given current up-scaling of  funding and less duplication and/or 
fragmentation of aid. 
                                                
 
2 Commission communications on Reinforcing the Union's disaster response capacity (COM(2008)130); 
Building a Global Climate Change Alliance between the European Union and poor developing 
countries most vulnerable to climate change (COM(2007)540); Reinforcing EU disaster and crisis response in third countries (COM(2005)153), the joint High Representative and Commission paper on 
Climate and international security (S113/08) and the Commission Staff Working Paper on Disaster 
Preparedness and Prevention (2003).