We are pleased to share The Intensifying Urban Flood Threat—Building Financial and Physical Resilience in China, the third in our 3-part China Flood Series. Part 1 is A Century of Floods in China—Historical Patterns and the Evolving Drivers of Loss, while part 2 is From Engineering Dominance to Integrated Resilience—China’s Flood-Management Transformation.
China made remarkable progress in management of flood risk during the 20th century. Decades of investment in hard-engineering, adaptive measures and public education have significantly reduced casualties and enhanced societal resilience.
As we move further into the 21st century, the impacts of climate change, population growth and urbanization are changing the nature of the risk, with increased pressure on the resilience of China’s mega-cities. How well society, government and the insurance industry adapt to these new challenges will determine the resilience and long-term viability of these urban environments.