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Rebuilding for the Future
Building on the OECD Prevent-React-Rebuild (PRR) framework for infrastructure resilience, this report focuses on Building Back Better as a strategic development choice rather than a mere restoration of damaged assets. It argues that reconstruction must be systematically planned, adequately financed and effectively governed to enhance resilience to future shocks while advancing sustainable development objectives. The stakes are particularly high for developing countries, where infrastructure deficits and socio-economic gaps amplify long-term costs of inadequate rebuilding. Drawing on concrete case studies from Honduras, Indonesia, Japan, Malawi, Nepal, Peru and Samoa, the report distils five actionable principles to guide reconstruction efforts after natural disasters to ensure they deliver on Building Back Better.
Executive summary
Building on the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030 and the OECD Prevent-React-Rebuild (PRR) framework for infrastructure resilience, this report focuses on Building Back Better (BBB), a call to reduce pre-existing vulnerabilities of disaster-struck infrastructure by upgrading design standards, strengthening institutions, and improving land use, governance, and service delivery, rather than restoring assets and services to their pre-disaster condition.
This report defines rebuilding not only as an effort to repair or restore physical assets but a strategic development choice. Any rebuilding effort needs to be planned, financed and implemented to increase resilience and preparedness to future shocks and to foster sustainable development. While BBB inevitably raises the upfront rebuilding costs it is key to breaking the cycle of poor development and limited resilience.
When critical competitiveness-related infrastructure is damaged in the aftermath of a disaster, it is necessary to activate, in parallel with the emergency response, a systemic planning process to ensure that the resources mobilised for reconstruction address pre-existing development gaps, increase future resilience and amplify opportunities for transformation. In the case of infrastructure this implies shifting from asset replacement to life-cycle-based investments that enhance safety, reliability, inclusiveness and adaptability. It also means meeting development aspirations, such as social inclusion, industrialisation, innovation and increased local value addition. In practice, this requires:
- Putting people at the centre of rebuilding efforts. This includes community engagement and participation in risk assessment and needs identification and linking rebuilding to socio-economic development programmes.
- Activating targeted financial resources that go beyond the reaction and restoration phase. Financing mechanisms must be designed to support quality and resilience, not only speed.
- Enabling co-ordination of multiple actors, across levels of government and with the private sector. An effective governance system with capacity to update regulatory frameworks is essential to carry out effective rebuilding plans and implement them in an efficient and transparent way.
”Rebuilding right” matters because, even if investment needs are high, the cost of inaction is even higher. This is particularly urgent for developing countries where vulnerabilities are growing and infrastructure and socio-economic gaps remain deep. The report presents five actionable principles to build back better, drawing from global good practices and in-depth analyses of projects in Honduras, Indonesia, Japan, Malawi, Nepal, Peru and Samoa:
- Enable forward-looking planning, shifting from a temporary fix or restoration intervention to a structural upgrade, to support long-term sustainable development.
- Embed preparedness in rebuilding, with targeted interventions to enhance resilience to future shocks and by using multi-hazard and data-driven risk assessments.
- Activate targeted funding and partnerships to ensure the mobilisation of long-term financing beyond recovery funds.
- Ensure effective time management by sequencing actions to ensure rebuilding is an investment for better futures.
- Put people at the centre of rebuilding efforts, engaging communities to foster social cohesion and linking infrastructure planning to socio-economic development planning.
Development banks and development finance institutions play a key role in the realisation of BBB, by enabling long-term funding, facilitating matching funds from the private sector and by providing tools, skills and access to technologies and data. They can also trigger additional investments in complementary areas in support of government development programmes to ensure that rebuilding translates into concrete sustainable development outcomes.
