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The Philippines is a country off the mainland of southeast Asia consisting of an archipelago of over 7,000 islands (Figure 5.39). It is also home to over 100 million people. By virtue of its geographical position it is highly prone to natural disasters. Its position on the western rim of the ‘Pacific Ring of Fire’ brings both earthquakes and volcanic activity, with secondary impacts such as lahars. It is also situated in an area where tropical disturbances (typhoons) cross from the Pacific towards southeast Asia making the Philippines the most exposed country in the world to this particular hazard. Tropical storms bring a great deal of flooding and the threat of landslides, which again add to the hazardous nature of life in these islands. All of this hinders the attempts by government to reduce the incidence of poverty and to reduce the number of people and assets vulnerable to these hazards. The cost to the Philippine economy has been estimated at 0.5 per cent of national GDP and indirect and secondary impacts further increase this cost. In addition to the significant economic cost, there are substantial social and environmental impacts. In 2013, for example, the country was subject to one severe earthquake (Bohol), touched or crossed by seven typhoons, including Haiyan (see above) and eight tropical storms. At the same time, the major volcanoes were still rumbling away with intermittent small-scale emissions of lava, steam and gas.
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