The Southeast Asia Disaster Risk Insurance Facility (SEADRIF) convened its 8th Technical Meeting in Kyoto, Japan, on 1 and 2 October 2025, co-chaired by Japan and Singapore, aiming to advance the scale-up of protection for public assets and strengthen fiscal and social resilience against disasters across the region. Representatives from SEADRIF member countries, development partners, and observers under the ASEAN+3 framework came together to review progress in disaster risk financing and align strategic priorities for moving forward. The discussions centered on a shared goal of building stronger, more financially protected communities and economies within the region, in the face of growing disaster risks.
The meeting focused on three main priorities: enhancing financial protection through new regional innovations, advancing SEADRIF’s technical work, and shaping the ASEAN+3 Disaster Risk Financing (DRF) Initiative 2026–2028 Roadmap. Within these discussions, the Technical Working Group on the Financial Protection of Public Assets, co-chaired by the Philippines Department of Finance (PDoF) and the Ministry of Finance of Japan (JMoF), underscored the need to treat disaster insurance as a strategic investment and to pursue a comprehensive solution that embeds risk protection into public infrastructure financing. Delegates also discussed the joint proposal by SEADRIF and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to the Green Climate Fund (GCF), in a session co-chaired by JMoF and the Ministry of Finance of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, highlighting regional efforts to mobilize international climate finance to strengthen disaster risk management in relation to agriculture.
Participants also reaffirmed their support for SEADRIF’s strategic direction and its central role in advancing the ASEAN+3 Disaster Risk Financing (DRF) agenda, recognizing it as a key regional platform translating shared policy priorities into practical financial protection solutions. They agreed that scale is essential to achieving both efficiency and sustainability in disaster risk financing across the region. Discussions underscored the need to expand SEADRIF’s access to capital and enhance its capabilities to address the evolving risk landscape. Additionally, participants highlighted the importance of sustained political commitment, funding support, and coordination to ensure SEADRIF continues to meet the growing protection needs of ASEAN+3 economies and communities.
Over the past year, SEADRIF has worked closely with member governments and partners to enhance financial protection and strengthen technical collaboration across the region. It continues to connect policy, practice, and partnerships to advance fiscal and social resilience, reflecting its evolution into a trusted regional mechanism for collective action.
Looking ahead, SEADRIF is poised to scale up its impact as a regional platform, expanding its strong foundation to offer a pathway for expanding financial protection and leveraging innovative instruments to meet complex, multivariate needs. Achieving greater scale will require collective collaboration under the ASEAN+3 framework. SEADRIF welcomes plans to elevate it to the ASEAN+3 Finance Track ministerial level by 2026 and remains committed to deepening regional cooperation to strengthen disaster risk preparedness across Southeast Asia.
