In a statement released by state-owned think tank Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS), Asian Development Bank (ADB) Independent Evaluation Director-General Vinod Thomas said it was only in recent years when the Philippines increased its disaster prevention efforts. Thomas said the recent shift in the country’s focus on disaster prevention yielded good results. He said disaster prevention efforts helped lower the number of casualties in typhoon Pablo in Cagayan de Oro in Mindanao in 2012 compared to the 674 deaths during typhoon Sendong in 2011.
