The Global Centre for Disaster Statistics (GCDS) at the International Research Institute of Disaster Science (IRIDeS) at Tohoku University was established in April 2015 to support the monitoring of the global targets of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030 (SFDRR). The GCDS, in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), is to provide support for National Disaster Management Offices (NDMOs) to build capacity in developing national disaster loss and damage statistics, an essential tool used in monitoring and policy making for the reduction of disaster risk. Since its establishment, the GCDS has been contributing to the implementation of the SFDRR.

In 2019, the GCDS participated in the Sendai Framework Voluntary Commitments (SFVCs), launched by the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR). Although the information regarding the activities of the GCDS is described in detail in the first Synthesis and Analysis Report of the SFVC [1], one of the activities committed to in its SFVC is to publish special issues of the Journal of Disaster Research as a contribution to the development of disaster statistics. The guest editors are pleased to publish the third special issue, which contains valuable academic articles closely related to the activities of the GCDS.

We hope that this special issue on the Development of Disaster Statistics makes a significant contribution to the literature on disaster statistics and accelerates its development.

1. [1] United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), “Sendai Framework Voluntary Commitments Synthesis and Analysis Report 2019,” 2019.