The African Development Bank Group’s Board of Directors has approved a $6 million grant to the African Risk Capacity (ARC) to enhance disaster preparedness and risk financing across Africa during 2025–2026. Approved on October 29 under the Bank’s African Disaster Risk Financing Initiative (ADRiFi), the grant will enable ARC to continue providing critical capacity-building and financial risk management services to the Bank’s regional member countries.
The project is designed to help African governments transition from reactive disaster responses to proactive preparedness. It will focus on strengthening the technical expertise and operational capacity of national institutions in disaster risk management, including the development of evidence-based risk assessments, early warning systems, and training programs for policymakers and technical professionals.
A major component of the initiative aims to improve the efficiency of emergency planning and resource allocation. It will also help establish stronger institutional frameworks that can deliver faster and more coordinated responses to natural disasters. Additionally, the project seeks to expand the participation of African countries in ARC’s sovereign insurance risk pool by introducing new climate risk insurance products and promoting engagement at the policy level. Efforts will also include advocacy for the ratification of the ARC Treaty and facilitation of insurance premium support.
Implementation will target ARC member states, particularly those most vulnerable to droughts, floods, tropical cyclones, and epidemics. Beneficiaries will include policymakers, technical working groups, and civil servants, who will receive support in disaster risk quantification, contingency planning, financing mechanisms, gender inclusion, and monitoring and evaluation processes.
Established in 2012 as a specialized institution of the African Union, the African Risk Capacity provides member states with services in risk modelling, contingency planning, and sovereign disaster risk financing. To date, 39 African Union member states have signed the ARC Agreement, which has enabled the disbursement of over $230 million to 14 countries, helping protect millions of people through rapid and predictable funding in the aftermath of disasters.
