|
|
- Permanent Link:
- http://dpanther.fiu.edu/dpService/dpPurlService/purl/FI13010960/00001
Notes
- Summary:
- This short note outlines good practices learned from projects related to disaster risk management around the developing world. Poundrik particularly focuses on the vulnerability of poor populations to natural disaster and strategies to increase their resilience before disaster strikes. The document begins with a discussion of the interrelated factors that make the poor the most vulnerable to disaster. It lists the likelihood of their residing in disaster prone areas, poorly constructed homes, lower educational attainment, lower quality of life, lack of alternative employment opportunities, and political marginalization as significant causes. Segments of the population that are most at risk are older people, children, persons with disabilities, and women. The author goes on to present the particular differences in the vulnerabilities faced by rural and urban communities. Urban risks are due to higher population densities, weaker social support systems, while rural households face communication difficulties, less access to government and financial institutions, and fewer livelihood options. In the next section of the document, the author addresses various measures to prepare households for potential disaster. It begins with a discussion of structural measures such as building shelters, moving populations from high-risk areas, using disaster-resistant construction guidelines, and retrofitting facilities. Of particular importance should be adapting livelihoods to climate change by developing weather resilient crops, crop diversification, conservation techniques, and expanding sources of income beyond farming. The final section of the note presents various financial risk mitigation strategies such as micro finance institutions that provide credit to poor households without their regular income, micro insurance to cover lost assets, social funds for community development, and increasing the accessibility of banks to poor people in the developing world as a means to promote savings. The author concludes the note by highlighting how investing in risk reduction offers greater returns in terms of lowering the loss of lives and assets compared to an emphasis on responding once disaster has occurred. Studies have shown that for every dollar spent on mitigation, $2 - $4 are saved in disaster impacts. The author advocates that mitigation measures and strategies to increase community resilience be incorporated into normal development initiatives, with a special emphasis on community involvement as a means to identify vulnerable populations and meet their particular needs. ( English,English,English )
- Subject:
- Livelihoods
- Scope and Content:
- Introduction p. 1; Adaptation strategies p. 4; Financial risk mitigation strategies p. 5; Delivery Mechanisms p. 9; Conclusions p. 13; Case Studies: Global initiatives to improve adaptive capacities p. 4; India: Diamond cutting and polishing p. 5; Mongolia: Micro finance development fund p. 6; Latin America: Emergency liquidity facility p. 6; India, The Philippines, and Turkey: Life and catastrophic insurance targeting the poor and vulnerable p. 7; Mongolia and India: Index-based livestock and weather-based crop insurance; The Philippines: Smart money and globe g-cash p. 9; Tanzania, Pakistan, and Madagascar: Social action, poverty alleviation, and community development funds p. 11
- Citation/Reference:
- Poundrik, S. (2010). Improving the resilience of livelihoods to natural disasters. The World Bank, Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR).
Record Information
- Source Institution:
- Florida International University
- Rights Management:
- This publication is released under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license. For full details of the license, please refer to the following: http://creative-commons.org/licenses/by/3.0/legalcode
- Resource Identifier:
- FI13010960
|
|
