Our History

PCRIC exists in large part due to the vision, tenacity, generosity and commitment of a diverse range of partners, donors and supporters who all recognised the region’s enormous financial exposure to climate and other natural disasters.

PCRIC traces its origins to a pilot insurance program launched by the World Bank in 2013 under the Pacific Catastrophe Risk Assessment and Financing Initiative (PCRAFI). In 2015, as the PCRAFI pilot program came to a close, Finance Ministers from across the Pacific Region demonstrated strong support for ongoing access to disaster risk financing options and at FEMM15 held in Rarotonga, Cook Islands sought commitment to establishment of a standalone facility to continue the insurance program.

This led to the formation of the Pacific Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility which consists of two legal entities – the Pacific Catastrophe Risk Insurance Foundation (PCRIF), and PCRIC which is wholly owned by the Foundation.

Operations and activities of the Foundation are conducted by a Council of Members which is made up of one representative from each member country and 4 donor representatives.

The following diagram displays the organisational architecture in which PCRIC exists, and identifies many of the donors and partnerships essential to the initial establishment of PCRIC. Supplementing this is a full list of key relationships integral to the development and operations of PCRIC.

“This evolution of PCRAFI is a major advancement in the region to mitigate against the financial impacts caused by extreme climate, weather related and geological hazards. Countries have full ownership of the PCRAFI Facility, putting finance ministers in the driving seat for product development and, for designing financial instruments that fit national disaster risk financing strategies”

 Dame Meg Taylor – former Secretary-General – The Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat