Paying out disaster relief before climate catastrophe strikes [Video]

Beyond the complex byways of international finance, a simple solution is gaining ground to protect populations caught in the path of destructive extreme weather: transfer a little money via their mobile phones before disaster strikes.

Faced with a flood, superstorm or mega-fire, “the earlier you get the money, the better”, Ranil Dissanayake, a researcher at the Center for Global Development, told AFP. “Recipients can use the cash to prepare dwellings, stockpile food, or temporarily move to areas expected to be unaffected.”

“Imagine what a difference that can make for manual labourers,” he added. “If you can get cash to them ahead of a 50 degree Celsius (122 degree Fahrenheit) heatwave in northern India, for example, they don’t have to work through that” to put food on the table.

– Timing is critical –

Cash-in-advance assistance is part of the toolkit in other disaster-relief scenarios but should now be extended to extreme weather events made worse …