GFDRR established the world's first global disaster recovery fund - the Standby Recovery Financing Facility (SRFF) - to bridge the gap between humanitarian assistance in the wake of a disaster and longer term recovery. The World Bank's board of Executive Directors approved FY07 budget of Development Grant Facility (DGF) on June 27, 2006 that included support for disaster risk reduction for effective implementation of Hyogo Framework of Action. Making risk reduction an integral component or dimension of all post disaster interventions is central to the SRFF.

SRFF primarily supports the accelerated transition from relief to development by catalysing cooperation among all stakeholders in post disaster damage loss and needs assessments for immediate, medium and long term recovery. Assisstance from SRFF adheres to a set of guiding principles. One of the important features of SRFF is to channel international assistance for disaster recovery that is contingent upon recipient organisations' track record in undertaking ex ante measures for disaster prevention and preparedness programs.

Key SRFF Deliverables

• Facilitated  17 Joint Damage, Loss, and Needs Assessments in partnership with the UN, international financial organizations, international NGOs, and Governments of Bangladesh, Bhutan, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Cambodia, China, Haiti, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Madagascar, Myanmar, Namibia, the Phillipines, Samoa, Senegal, Tonga and Yemen.
• Formulated 13 sector-specific Good Practice Notes on earthquake recovery and two reconstruction and guidance notes for cyclones and earthquakes.
• Deployed World Bank experts and specialists to support the newly established Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) field office in Yangon after Cyclone Nargis struck Myanmar.
• Activated a post-disaster recovery fund, the Callable Fund, which provided $2.3 million recovery support to local governments in Bangladesh and leveraged $109 million for a post cyclone recovery and reconstruction project in the country.
• Provided substantial support for sustainable recovery after the Sichuan earthquake in China.
• Trained more than 400 disaster recovery experts at the World Bank, regional banks,  UN agencies, civil protection agencies, and international NGOs in DaLa methodology.
• Trained 250 participants in Vietnam, Indonesia, Madagascar, and Myanmar in the methodology for assessing post-disaster damage and losses (DaLa).
• Established a Quick Reaction Team (QRT) roster at the World Bank to mobilize expertise faster and more systematically, in support of the World Bank’s new Rapid Response Policy.

SRFF Handbook

Post-disaster Assessments

• Central African Republic: Joint Needs Assessment Report on Recurrent Urban Flooding in Bangui (French)
• Yemen: Damage, Losses and Needs Assessment for October-2008 Tropical Storm and Floods
• Haiti: Post Disaster Needs Assessment for 2008 Hurricane season
  Video: Haiti Flooded
• Myanmar: Post Cyclone Nargis Joint Assessment Report 
• Madagascar: Damage, Loss and Needs assessment for 2008 Cyclone season
• Bangladesh:Damage, Loss and Needs Assessment for Cyclone Sidr
• Bolivia: Damage, Loss and Needs assessment
• Damage and loss assessment guidelines and previous assessments

Financial Structure

• Technical Assistance Fund: Australia, European Commission, Norway and Sweden
• Callable Fund: Denmark, European Commission, Italy, Luxembourg, Switzerland and USAID/OFDA