MANILA -- The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is lending the Philippines $500 million to give the country quick access to funding in case of natural disasters or health emergencies.

In a statement, the ADB said the Second Disaster Resilience Improvement Program will harmonize disaster risk reduction and management (DRRM) planning processes at the national, provincial, and city levels, and integrate DRRM into national public financial management reforms. 

It will also improve the services of state-owned or controlled corporations for disaster response and include a voluntary city disaster insurance scheme that gives faster payouts for damages caused by quakes or typhoons.

The ADB said the program may be replenished twice, with the approval of the ADB Board. Loan renewals will be allowed if there will be unutilized amounts after the initial 5-year period.

“With this program, we aim to help boost the country’s capacity for DRRM nationally and locally...and attain long-term resilience to lessen the impact of disasters, especially to the most vulnerable sectors," said ADB Country Director for the Philippines Pavit Ramachandran.

The ADB in September said it is focusing on economic growth and quality infrastructure, and disaster resilience in its new country partnership strategy for the Philippines.

The Philippines remained the country most at risk from the effects of natural events for the third straight year, according to the 2024 WorldRiskReport released in September.

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