This regional Human Development Report makes the case for the integration of risks and for strategies to reduce disaster risks by incorporating the role that people play, both as victims/survivors of disasters and as agents of change, within development interventions.

This proactive approach can be summarized as reducing risks for people and by people. The implications of such a paradigm shift are paramount for the countries of the Western Balkans, prone as they are to natural and human-made hazards and given their willingness to build on the human potential within their societies.