The World Bank launched a new satellites project to quickly assess flood response costs to help expedite relief.
Damages from natural disasters amount to US$300 billion each year, which can place pressure on governments and destabilise countries, the World Bank said. The Washington DC-institution's Disaster Risk Financing and Insurance programme (DRFIP) and Columbia University's Earth Institute joint project aims to define operational framework for the quick evaluation of flood response costs on a national scale.
"Natural disasters can cause fiscal volatility for national governments because of sudden, unexpected expenditures required during and after an event," said the World Bank report authors Antoine Bavandi, Upmanu Lall and Benedikt Signer.
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The project, financed by the Rockefeller Foundation, conducted initial demonstration cases in Bangladesh and Thailand. "Of all the different natural hazards, floods seem to be, on average, the type of natural disaster which causes the most damage to life and development gains," said Mr Lall, director of Columbia Water Centre at Columbia University. "What makes this complex and interesting is that there are many variables which go into assessing the loss caused by floods."
The project looked at rainfall-induced riverine floods, which are the most common resulting in expensive damage.
Flooding in Thailand in 2011 caused devastation in the northern region as well as the greater Bangkok metro area. Rainfall was three to 10 times more than the country's historical average and despite numerous dams, the volume of rain led to about $46bn in losses, most of it from property damages to manufacturing plants located near Bangkok.
"At this point, we are trying to evaluate the applicability of remote-sensing data to near real-time flood monitoring," said Mr Bavandi, a DRFIP financial sector specialist who leads this project. "Recent satellite technology can be seen as a potential game-changer in this field, and we are exploring how to best leverage their potential for the benefit of the governments we advise."
He said these preliminary results we've seen are promising and options to combine satellite-based measurements with traditional hydrologic model-based approaches are also being explored. "The longer-term objective is to help developing countries make risk-informed decisions on their disaster relief financing," Mr Bavandi said.
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Habibi Funk: An Eclectic Selection Of Music From The Arab World (Habibi Funk)
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
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Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
The five pillars of Islam
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
SHAITTAN
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Learn more about Qasr Al Hosn
In 2013, The National's History Project went beyond the walls to see what life was like living in Abu Dhabi's fabled fort:
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At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
North Pole stats
Distance covered: 160km
Temperature: -40°C
Weight of equipment: 45kg
Altitude (metres above sea level): 0
Terrain: Ice rock
South Pole stats
Distance covered: 130km
Temperature: -50°C
Weight of equipment: 50kg
Altitude (metres above sea level): 3,300
Terrain: Flat ice
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets