|
|
- Permanent Link:
- http://dpanther.fiu.edu/dpService/dpPurlService/purl/FI13022769/00001
Notes
- Summary:
- This document assesses the effectiveness of the disaster risk reduction (DRR) components of the Swiss Agency for Development’s (SDC) humanitarian and development assistance programs implemented internationally in 2010. The SDC’s dedication to DRR internationally can be directly linked to the country’s long history of active risk reduction efforts domestically. Frequent disasters nearly a century ago led Switzerland to prioritize natural resource management, with a particular emphasis on reducing risks to disasters. Today Swiss government agencies collaborate closely with foreign counterparts in developing prevention, mitigation, and preparedness policies. The country’s scientific institutions lend their expertise in assessing and monitoring risks. The insurance sector works in developing risk transfer solutions for developing countries, while Swiss NGOs implement DRR-centered projects abroad. These initiatives have become even more critical as the devastation of disasters has increased exponentially over the past three to four decades. In 2007 the SDC approved Guidelines on Disaster Risk Reduction, ensuring that DRR is mainstreamed into its programs and projects. These Guidelines were implemented in seven pilot countries: Bangladesh, Georgia, Mali, Mongolia, Nicaragua, Peru, and Tajikistan. After the pilot phase, site visits and interviews with beneficiaries and implementing partners were conducted to assess their effectiveness in four impact domains: awareness building, capacity development, policy development, and specific risk reduction. The SDC strengthened local government capacity to develop policies and establish resources for DRR throughout Peru, while improving municipal capacity to develop methodologies and instruments for risk analysis and hazard mapping in Nicaragua. It has also been successful in making DRR a priority of the United Nation’s Development Assistance Framework strategy 2011-2015 for Georgia. In Tajikistan, the Tajik Earthquake Safety Initiative raised awareness and increased the preparedness of students, schoolteachers, and health facility staff. In Bangladesh the SDC has helped develop a masters course on disaster management at Dhaka University, and increased the capacities and awareness of coastal communities. In Mongolia, the SDC has focused on improving pasture management as a means of preserving natural resources and preventing famine. In Mali, the SDC has increased farmer resilience to drought by improving irrigation, countering deforestation, and improving local crop storage
- Subject:
- Disaster Risk Reduction
- Citation/Reference:
- Zimmermann, M., Stossel, F. (2011). Disaster risk reduction in international cooperation: Switzerland's contribution to the protection of lives and livelihoods. Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC).
|
|
