Disaster Readiness Varies Widely Across the Middle East and North Africa
People in Gulf countries report stronger disaster readiness than people in several nearby countries, including Lebanon, Iraq, and Palestine. A worldwide survey of more than 143,000 people in 140 countries and territories found that these differences affect how prepared households feel, how much they trust their governments, and whether they can recover after a crisis.
The survey measured how well people, families, and communities can face major emergencies and recover from them. The global average score was 57 points. Kuwait led the countries included in the regional results with 74 points. Bahrain scored 72, while Oman and the United Arab Emirates each scored 70.
Gulf Residents Express Confidence in Emergency Plans
Many people in the Gulf said their governments were ready to respond to disasters. In the United Arab Emirates, 87% of people said the government was well prepared. That was the second-highest share among the 133 countries included in the resilience index. In Bahrain, 82% gave the same answer.
Oman, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates were also among the countries where people were least worried about heatwaves and drought. Israel had a different measure of disaster exposure: fewer than 1% of its residents said they had been affected by a disaster during the period covered by the survey.
Lebanon, Iraq, and Palestine Face Greater Strain
The resilience scores were lower in Lebanon, Iraq, and Palestine. Lebanon received 48 points, Iraq scored 49, and Palestine scored 52. In Lebanon, only 14% of respondents felt the government was well prepared for disasters.
Warnings can help people protect themselves before danger arrives, but many Lebanese respondents who had experienced a disaster said they never received one in advance. Only 39% of affected people in Lebanon reported getting a warning, compared with 80% worldwide.
Trust in government was also low. In Iraq, 59% of people said their government did not care about them at all. In Lebanon, 56% said the same. The global average for this response was 29%.
Financial pressure leaves many families with little room to handle an emergency. More than half of households in Iraq, Jordan, and Palestine said they could not pay for basic needs for a month if they lost their income.
Lebanon also stood out for worries about personal safety and health. Some 71% of people there feared that drinking water could seriously harm their health. That was the fifth-highest share worldwide for this concern. Violent crime worried 90% of Lebanese respondents, the sixth-highest level among the countries surveyed.
North Africa Shows Improvement
North Africa had the largest regional rise in resilience, improving by five points compared with an earlier survey. Algeria and Egypt contributed to the gains through wider internet access, better preparation at home, and stronger ability to manage financial shocks.
These factors can make a difference during an emergency. Internet access may help people receive warnings, while household planning and available savings can help families respond when services or income are disrupted.
Warnings and Income Shape Disaster Response
Worldwide, about 1.1 billion adults experienced a disaster during the five years before the survey. Nearly 220 million of them received no warning beforehand.
People in lower-income countries were more likely to be affected. About one-third of adults in low-income countries said they had experienced a disaster during that period, compared with 16% of adults in high-income countries.
Warnings were also less common in poorer countries. Among people affected by a disaster, 64% in low-income countries received an advance warning. The share was 84% in high-income countries. Even when people in low-income and lower-middle-income countries received warnings, fewer than half took steps to protect themselves. In wealthier countries, 71% of warned people took preventive action.
The number of ways a warning reached someone was linked to whether they acted. Among people who received a warning through one channel, such as a text message or television, 37% took preventive steps. That share rose to 51% when people received warnings through two channels and 64% when they received them through three, such as text messages, television, and social media.
Mobile phones could help reach people who currently miss warnings. Of the roughly 220 million people worldwide who experienced a disaster without an advance alert, 77% owned a mobile phone. That represents more than 170 million people who could potentially be reached through a phone-based warning system.