WorldRiskReport 2024: Urgent Need for Action in Times of Multiple Crises

The WorldRiskReport 2024, published today by Bündnis Entwicklung Hilft (BEH) and the Institute for International Law of Peace and Humanitarian Law (IFHV), calls for new strategies in crisis prevention and risk management. With its focus on "multiple crises", the report provides a powerful illustration of how climate change, geopolitical conflicts and health crises are inextricably linked, and of the far-reaching consequences these crises have for global security and development.

The World in the Grip of Multiple Crises

Extreme weather events, wars and new health threats such as polio and Mpox: global crises are omnipresent and are increasingly overwhelming international aid systems. “Our world is in the grip of multiple crises. They are mutually reinforcing, creating new, threatening challenges to global security. The WorldRiskReport 2024 shows with alarming clarity that the international community must act decisively and immediately,” emphasizes Dr. Ilona Auer Frege, Managing Director of Bündnis Entwicklung Hilft. “Our traditional crisis management is no longer sufficient for multiple crises. We urgently need innovative and integrated approaches to disaster risk management,” adds Dr. Katrin Radtke, Senior Researcher at the IFHV at the Ruhr University Bochum and scientific director of the report.

Global Risks on the Rise

As every year, the report also contains the WorldRiskIndex, assessing disaster risks for 193 countries and covering more than 99% of the world's population. While the known risk hotspots remain in the Americas and Asia, the report shows a long-term shift in risk toward countries with climate-sensitive exposures and high vulnerability.

Germany has improved slightly in the ranking and now ranks 98th with a risk score of 4.1 but remains in the global midfield. This underscores the need for comprehensive efforts to minimize risk.

A special evaluation also shows that the risk profile of many countries is characterized not only by extreme weather events, but also increasingly by ongoing conflicts. Particularly affected are regions in Central and North Africa, Central and South America, and South Asia, where conflicts exacerbate already high risk levels.

The full WorldRiskReport 2024 can be downloaded on the website: weltrisikobericht.de/weltrisikobericht-2024-e/.