Sri Lanka cyclone caused US$4.1 billion in damage: World Bank
· CNA · JoinRead a summary of this article on FAST.
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
COLOMBO: Cyclone Ditwah, which struck Sri Lanka last month, caused an estimated US$4.1 billion in direct physical damage to buildings, agriculture and critical infrastructure, according to a World Bank report released on Monday (Dec 22).
The storm killed more than 640 people and affected over 10 per cent of the island’s population, with floods and landslides leaving widespread destruction across the South Asian nation. The World Bank said the damage amounted to roughly 4 per cent of Sri Lanka’s gross domestic product.
INFRASTRUCTURE AND HOUSING HIT HARDEST
Infrastructure suffered the largest losses, with damage to roads, bridges, railways and water supply networks estimated at US$1.735 billion, the World Bank said in its Global Rapid Post-Disaster Damage Estimation (GRADE) report.
Housing damage was valued at about US$985 million, accounting for nearly a quarter of the total estimated losses.
Other buildings, including schools, health facilities, businesses and large industrial sites located along major rivers and waterways, were also heavily affected, with damages estimated at US$562 million.
The World Bank stressed that its assessment covered only direct physical damage and did not include broader economic losses such as lost income or production, nor the full cost of recovery and reconstruction.
ECONOMIC RECOVERY AT RISK
The cyclone struck as Sri Lanka was emerging from its worst economic crisis in decades. In 2022, the country ran out of foreign exchange reserves, triggering shortages of food, fuel and medicines and pushing the economy into a deep downturn.
Since then, Sri Lanka has stabilised following a US$2.9 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund approved in early 2023. Last week, the IMF said its board had also approved US$206 million in emergency financing to support the country’s post-cyclone recovery.
The Sri Lankan government has additionally secured an agreement with the World Bank to repurpose US$120 million from an ongoing project to fund disaster recovery efforts.
Despite these measures, the World Bank warned that the scale of damage from Cyclone Ditwah could pose fresh challenges for Sri Lanka’s fragile recovery, underscoring the country’s vulnerability to extreme weather events linked to climate change.
Sign up for our newsletters
Get our pick of top stories and thought-provoking articles in your inbox
Get the CNA app
Stay updated with notifications for breaking news and our best stories
Get WhatsApp alerts
Join our channel for the top reads for the day on your preferred chat app