In 2024, the Philippines was hit by six typhoons in 30 days, affecting more than 13 million people.[1] This year, several storms have again formed in the Western Pacific, moving from the Philippines across China, Taiwan, Vietnam, and Thailand. While attributing any single typhoon directly to climate change is complex, scientific evidence shows that global warming is increasing the conditions that allow typhoons to become more intense and more likely to occur in clusters.[2]
This reality underscores the urgent need not only for rapid emergency responses but also for comprehensive, long-term strategies, as seen in Japan’s bōsai system,[3] which integrates prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response, recovery, and reconstruction. Achieving this will require sustained political commitment, regional coordination, innovative financing, and careful use of limited fiscal space, especially as many countries confront rising debt and declining official development assistance.
Why today’s typhoons hit harder
While scientists cannot attribute every storm directly to global warming, the overall trend is clear: warmer sea-surface temperatures and a hotter, wetter atmosphere provide more “fuel” for typhoons.[4] In the Philippines, the extreme conditions that enabled six consecutive storms in 2024 are becoming more likely due to human-caused climate change,[5] and in Japan, research on Typhoon Hagibis showed that climate change increased associated rainfall, causing catastrophic flooding and billions in damages.[6] Independent analyses similarly find that the potential intensity of Northwestern Pacific typhoons, in terms of rainfall and wind speed, is already increasing in a warmer world,[7] and additional scientific projections for Southeast China suggest that stronger winds and heavier rainfall could sharply increase future typhoon-related losses.[8]
A region under strain
According to the Climate Risk Index (CRI) – one of the longest-running global indices measuring the impacts of climate-related extreme weather – Myanmar, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Nepal were among the countries most affected in 2024.[9]
In Southeast Asia, Typhoon Yagi was especially devastating. In Myanmar, it triggered catastrophic flooding, killed more than 800 people, affected 3.4 million, and caused an estimated USD 222 million in losses. In Vietnam, Yagi brought wind gusts of 280 km/h, which is comparable to the velocity of a high-speed train and strong enough to bring down power lines. In Vietnam, typhoon Yagi killed 345 people and affected 3.6 million, inflicting nearly USD 2 billion in damage.
The Philippines was one of the worst hit, facing six typhoons in 2024 that displaced more than 11 million people, caused hundreds of deaths, and inflicted over USD 700 million in losses. In Nepal, although typhoons were not the cause, intensified monsoon rains produced comparable devastation, triggering landslides across more than 40 districts and killing over 250 people.
This pattern has continued into 2025, with several powerful storms arriving in rapid succession. Super typhoon Ragasa hit the Philippines in September, before moving to Taiwan and southern China, where it caused storm surges up to 9 feet, massive evacuations (over 2 million in China), and substantial infrastructure damage.[10]
In the same month, Bualoi followed, which formed near the Philippines and intensified as it reached Vietnam, causing 27 deaths in the Philippines, 51 in Vietnam, injuring hundreds, disrupting power for 2 million Vietnamese households, and damaging 44,000 homes.[11]
In early November, Typhoon Kalmaegi brought widespread flooding to central Vietnam, uprooting trees, damaging buildings, disrupting transport and agriculture, and leading to the evacuation of over 537,000 people.[12]
The most recent storm, Typhoon Fung-wong, first hit Aurora province, in the Philippines, in early November, and then headed to Taiwan, causing destructive widespread floods, power outages for entire towns, landslides, and displacing more than a million people.[13] Combined with the damage of Kalmaegi, the widespread destruction prompted President Marcos Jr. to declare a “state of national calamity” in the Philippines[14] and to unlock emergency funds.
Beyond direct human costs, economic losses, and humanitarian fallout
Beyond human and material tolls, typhoons cause deep economic losses and long-term impacts on livelihoods. A 2022 World Bank report estimated that annual losses from typhoons in the Philippines already reach 1.2 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), rising to 4.6 per cent in extreme events like Super Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) in 2013. Climate change could push losses to 7.6 per cent of GDP by 2030 and 13.6 per cent by 2040 if left unaddressed.[15] However, the report noted that investing in adaptation, especially climate-resilient infrastructure, could help lower economic losses by 2.5 per cent by 2030 and up to 6.2 per cent in 2025.
Typhoons also deepen inequalities, hitting vulnerable groups hardest, and increase humanitarian needs. For example, after Typhoon Kalmaegi in Vietnam, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) documented widespread disruptions, including damaged roads and power lines, leaving isolated communities without access to essential services such as water supply or health assistance. Storms also damage Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) infrastructure, increasing the likelihood of waterborne or foodborne diseases. The report highlighted urgent needs for food aid, agricultural inputs, and repairs to irrigation systems to sustain livelihoods.[16] Vulnerable groups include pregnant and lactating women, young children, and people with disabilities or living with illnesses, who often face heightened risks when nutrition, water, or health services are disrupted. Last, these cascading impacts often extend beyond national borders, interrupting supply chains[17] and contributing to inflationary pressures.[18]
The missing billions in disaster spending
According to Greenpeace Philippines, there are major leakages in the country’s disaster-risk management funding. The group estimates that as much as PHP 1.089 trillion in climate-tagged spending since 2023 may have been vulnerable to corruption. This is based on government climate-finance data and testimonies indicating that only 30-40% of some flood-control budgets reach actual implementation.[19] Independent media investigations point to similar issues. The East Asia Forum reported several “ghost projects”, including a PHP 55-million flood-control structure in Bulacan that was never built.[20] The Philippine Daily Inquirer also reported widespread use of inflated contracts and “cuts” of 20-25%, which leave only a fraction of the funds for real construction.[21] The Philippine Centre for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) reported overall deep structural corruption and inequality in the country’s flood control programmes.[22] Together, these cases reveal deeper governance failures that weaken the country’s ability to prepare for increasingly destructive typhoons. One OpEd argued that such corruption not only weakens physical infrastructure but also destroys public trust and fuels social anger,[23] highlighted by subsequent political tension and mass protests.[24]
However, there is hope for better responses. The Philippines recently passed the Declaration of State of Imminent Disaster Act (Republic Act No. 12287), which formally integrates anticipatory action into the country’s Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Framework.[25] Developed by the Office of Civil Defence with support from the World Food Programme (WFP), the law enables national and local authorities to act before a disaster strikes, using forecasts and risk assessments to release funds early, protect homes and livelihoods, and reduce humanitarian impacts.
Hope amid the storms: some models of efficient response
Vietnam provides an example of coordinated planning and rigorous monitoring response to crises. After Typhoon Yagi, it conducted a multi-sector assessment to guide evidence-based recommendations for sustainable and resilient recovery.[26] It has also invested, with World Bank support, in flood-resilient infrastructure projects in the Mekong Delta while involving local authorities in disaster monitoring and response.[27] However, Vietnamese leaders, including Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, have urged stronger adaptation measures, calling for improved institutions and greater risk management capacity.[28] [29]
Japan, despite facing centuries of earthquakes, tsunamis, floods, typhoons, and volcanic eruptions, has developed highly effective disaster reduction practices, grounded in community involvement and continuous innovation.[30] Its bōsai approach, which combines prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response, recovery, and reconstruction, integrates both hard technologies (such as resilient infrastructure, sensors, engineering systems) and soft strategies (including education, training, governance, community involvement).[31] Through the Asian Disaster Reduction Centre, Japan shares knowledge and builds the capacity of officials and researchers, including those from Small Island Developing States (SIDS), who face increasing threats from sea-level rise and stronger tropical cyclones, and often lack the fiscal capacity to respond.[32]
Beyond adaptation: building a fair and resilient future
While some scientists warn that the world is nearing irreversible climate thresholds, mitigation remains essential and urgent, as underscored by the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General António Guterres.[33] At this year’s UN Climate Change Conference (COP30), civil society groups, including voices like Lidy Nacpil, coordinator of the Asian Peoples’ Movement on Debt and Development, emphasised that governments must commit to climate justice, fair financing, and a just transition that protects vulnerable populations.[34]
Although the long-term frequency of storms is uncertain, their severity and destructive potential are projected to worsen, making preparedness and long-term recovery indispensable national priorities. Countries must deploy appropriate fiscal tools, such as green budgeting, targeted tax incentives, green subsidies, and climate-aligned public investment. They must expand green and resilient infrastructure and ensure that climate action supports sustainable and inclusive development, while protecting the most vulnerable communities.