Pre-arranged financing helps nations to prepare and recover faster from hurricanes, heatwaves, cyclones and other catastrophic weather events – but more needs to be done to improve access and affordability

When Hurricane Beryl tore through Grenada and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines in July, right at the start of the 2024 hurricane season, it knocked out power and communications, destroyed buildings and left 11 people dead as well as thousands homeless. Supercharged by warm seas, Beryl rapidly strengthened to a category 5 hurricane. The total economic damage in St Vincent and the Grenadines was around $230m (£180m), or 22% of GDP.

Ocean warming means that rapidly intensifying hurricanes such as Beryl are increasingly common. “They cause major emergencies for populations who are becoming more and more vulnerable due to more fragile infrastructures,” says Elina Ceballos, director of programmes for the Cuban Council of Churches.