One-third of global population vulnerable to flooding: Moody’s

As the Southeastern US and central Europe contend with the aftermath of unprecedented flooding, a new Moody’s white paper published October 30 titled “An integrated approach to evaluate population exposure to inland and coastal flooding” has revealed that 2.7 billion people—more than one-third of the global population—reside in areas vulnerable to inland or coastal flooding.

“260 million people are exposed to risk from coastal flooding.”

The paper, which analyses flood risk from 1975 to 2030, found that the proportion of people exposed to flood risk has steadily increased since 1975, driven by factors such as the rising frequency and severity of flooding events due to climate change, urbanisation, and land-use practices.

It stated that approximately 260 million people are exposed to risk from coastal flooding at the 100-year return period—more than 70 percent of those individuals live in just five countries. South Asia is the most flood-prone region, with almost 40 percent of its inhabitants susceptible to inland flooding and just over 5 percent at risk from coastal flooding at the 100-year return period level.

“Flooding is a pervasive and recurrent natural hazard that has far-reaching consequences for human communities and the environment,” states the Moody’s report. “As flooding continues to pose a growing threat, understanding the populations most vulnerable to its effects is paramount for effective disaster management and mitigation efforts.”

For more news from the American Property Casualty Insurance Association (APCIA) click here.

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