The OECD is inviting comments on the draft revised Recommendation on the Governance of Critical Risks. The current version of the Recommendation, adopted in 2014, provides guidance to governments on how to anticipate, prepare for, and manage risks that have the most strategically significant consequences for societies and economies (hereafter, “critical risks”). The draft revised version aims to ensure the Recommendation remains relevant in light of lessons learned from recent global shocks, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, and emerging challenges including the increasing intensity and frequency of extreme weather events, hybrid threats, supply chain vulnerabilities, and the growing role of digital technologies.
Critical risks, whether linked to natural hazards, technological developments, or human action, can disrupt essential services, undermine trust in government, and threaten national security. Effective governance of these risks requires a whole-of-society approach, engaging public authorities, private actors, and civil society in coordinated efforts to build resilience.
In times of crisis, flexible emergency authorities, well-rehearsed and scalable response capabilities, and continuity of essential services are particularly important to buffer adverse impacts and foster rapid recovery. People’s experiences of how crises are managed, not only in terms of outcomes but also how decisions are made, communicated and implemented under pressure, can directly impact trust in government.
Read the draft revised Recommendation on the Governance of Critical Risks (PDF, 152 KB)
The draft revised Recommendation builds on the 2014 version of the Recommendation and would continue to recommend that Adherents:
- Clarify the roles and responsibilities for disaster risk and crisis management, assigning leadership for alignment of priorities and coordination of stakeholders, and establishing cooperative frameworks with the business and volunteer sectors to build national resilience.
- Build preparedness through foresight analysis and link directly to decision making on building core risk management capabilities.
- Invest in disaster risk reduction measures and critical infrastructure resilience.
- Develop adaptive capacity to manage crises, and in particular the gaps in preparedness that arise from unexpected risks.
- Raise awareness of the population about exposures to critical risks, ensure transparency of information used in risk management decisions, hold officials accountable for failure to carry out responsibilities, and invest in research to continuously improve risk management policies and measures, including learning from past crises.
Building on these elements, the draft revised Recommendation more broadly presents the main features of a critical risks governance system organised around five key elements:
- A comprehensive, all-hazards, whole-of-society approach to governance of critical risks
- A process for identifying and assessing critical risks and for using it to inform decisions on closing gaps in capabilities and capacities
- Actions that strengthen disaster risk reduction, critical infrastructure continuity and security of supply of essential goods
- Adaptative capacities to manage unanticipated national crises
- Transparency and accountability, as well as continuous learning from past experience and current knowledge
If adopted, the implementation, dissemination, and continued relevance of the revised Recommendation would be regularly reviewed and reported on to the OECD Council to ensure that the measures therein remain impactful and encourage ongoing sharing of country experiences and best practices. It would also support and complement other related OECD standards and work relevant to reinforcing trust in government and provide the basis for the OECD to continue to serve as a forum for exchanging information, guidance, and leading practices on the governance of critical risks.
What is an OECD Recommendation?
An OECD Recommendation is a legal instrument adopted by the OECD Council. Recommendations are not legally binding but represent a political commitment to the principles they contain and an expectation that Adherents will do their best to implement them. There are currently around 180 OECD Recommendations in force. For more information please consult the online Compendium of OECD Legal Instruments.
Purpose of the public consultation
The consultation is open to government officials, the business sector, civil society organisations, think tanks, public and private research organisations, international organisations and interested citizens and stakeholders.
The aim of the consultation is to ensure that the final text reflects the experience, needs and aspirations of the international community concerning governance of critical risks. The draft Recommendation is being developed through an inclusive and horizontal approach, soliciting input from relevant OECD bodies. It is still a work in progress at the OECD and the content may be subject to modifications, including in order to take account of comments received through the public consultation. The final draft Recommendation will be submitted to the Public Governance Committee for approval after which it would be presented to the OECD Council for adoption.
Your rights
Comments received will be considered public and may be published on the OECD website, with your name, title and organisation. If you do not wish for this information (name, title, organisation) to be shared on the website, please indicate this clearly in your email with submissions to gov.risk@oecd.org.
Any personal data provided as part of this consultation is protected consistent with the OECD Data Protection Rules. If you have further queries or complaints related to the processing of your personal data, please contact the OECD Data Protection Officer. If you need further assistance in resolving claims related to personal data protection you can contact the OECD Data Protection Commissioner.
How to contribute
Interested parties are invited to comment on the text by sending written comments in English or French to gov.risk@oecd.org until 14 February 2026.
If you have a comment on a specific provision within the draft Recommendation, please indicate this along with the page number (e.g. II. 2.b, p.6).