The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank Group (AfDB) has approved a $6 million grant to support the African Risk Capacity (ARC) in enhancing disaster preparedness and risk financing across the continent over the 2025–2026 period.

Approved on October 29, the grant—provided through the Bank’s African Disaster Risk Financing Initiative (ADRiFi)—will enable ARC to sustain its core capacity-building and disaster risk management services for regional member countries.

The initiative aims to help African governments shift from reactive disaster responses to proactive preparedness. It will strengthen national institutions by improving technical expertise, developing early warning systems, and equipping policymakers and experts with evidence-based tools for risk assessment and response.

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A major component of the project will focus on improving how countries plan and allocate resources during emergencies. It will also help build stronger institutional frameworks to ensure faster, more coordinated responses to natural disasters.

The ARC will expand participation in its sovereign insurance risk pool, offering new climate risk insurance products and engaging with member states to promote treaty ratification and finalize country work programmes. The project will also facilitate insurance premium support to help nations access coverage.

Implementation will span all ARC member states, prioritizing regions most vulnerable to droughts, floods, tropical cyclones, and epidemics. Beneficiaries will include policymakers, technical experts, and civil servants, who will receive targeted training in disaster risk quantification, contingency planning, risk financing, gender inclusion, and monitoring and evaluation.