Duryog Nivaran: Networking for Disaster Risk Reduction in South Asia

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Duryog Nivaran Networking for Disaster Risk
Reduction in South Asia

• Presentation at Preliminary Consultative Meeting
• Building a Global Network of NGOs for
• Community Resilience to Disasters
• Geneva, 25-26 October, 2006
• --Amjad Bhatti, Regional Coordinator, Duryog
  Nivaran Secretariat, Islamabad, Pakistan

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What Duryog Nivaran stands for?

• Duryog Nivaran is a Sanskrit phrase meaning
  disaster mitigation.
• Duryog Nivaran, established in 1995, is a
  network of individuals and organisations from
  South Asia who are committed to promoting the
  alternative perspective on disasters and
  vulnerability as a basis for disaster mitigation
  in the region.

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Objective

• The overall aim of Duryog Nivaran is to reduce
  the communities susceptibility to disasters and
  conflicts. This is achieved by incorporating the
  alternative perspective at conceptual, policy
  and implementation levels of disaster mitigation
  and development programmes in South Asian region.

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Dominant Perspective Alternative Perspective

• Disasters and conflicts are viewed as an isolated
  event
• Less analysis on linkages in society during
  normal times

• Disasters and conflicts are part of the normal
  process of development
• Analysing linkages in society during normal times
  is fundamental to understanding disasters and
  conflicts

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Dominant Perspective Alternative Perspective

• Technical and law and order solutions are adhered
  
• Centralised state institutions dominate the
  intervention. Less people participation. People
  are regarded as victims.

• Emphasis is on solutions that change the
  relationships and structures in society. The
  objective being to strengthen peoples capacity
  and reduce their vulnerability
• Decentralised institutions play the main role.
  Participation of people is paramount. People are
  treated as partners in development.

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Dominant Perspective Alternative Perspective

• Implementing agencies are rarely accountable and
  their processes are less transparent
• Interventions come after the event
• The objective is to return to the situation prior
  to the event

• Accountability and transparency are paramount in
  this strategy
• Interventions aim at preparing communities and
  mitigating the impact of disasters
• Disasters and conflicts are viewed as
  opportunities for social transformation

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DN Themes

• Understanding linkages with society
• Myths of science and technology
• Accountability
• Regional cooperation
• Understanding vulnerability and capacity
• Risk and Livelihoods

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Principles for Advocacy

• Disasters should be looked at as a part of
  ecology and they should be managed rather than
  controlled.
• Disasters should be treated as issues of
  development and governance and states should be
  made responsive, sensitive and accountable to the
  demands, needs and rights of disaster-prone
  communities and areas.
• Disaster management policies should be redirected
  towards poverty and vulnerability reduction
  instead of mere compensation and relief response.

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Principles for Advocacy

• Disaster management strategies should integrate
  structural measures (construction of embankments,
  dykes, resistant buildings, etc.) with
  non-structural measures such as enhancing the
  entitlements and negotiating power of the most
  vulnerable communities and subordinate social
  groups.
• Disaster-prone communities should be engaged
  equitably into the process of disaster-related
  decision-making and development planning,
  implementation and monitoring.

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Highlights of DN Activities

• Research and publications related to disaster
  preparedness and mitigation, regional
  cooperation, gender and risk and livelihoods.
• Initiate a process of building awareness of media
  on issues related to the alternative perspective
  on disasters and community capacity building, and
  on effective disaster reporting.
• Policy discussions and debates on
  institutionalizing and mainstreaming the
  Alternative perspective in South Asia
• Community-based initiatives in partner countries
  to demonstrate the alternative perspective in
  practice through the Livelihood Options for
  Disaster Risk Reduction project
• Developing the CBDM- Community-Based Disaster
  Management training methodology, and training the
  stakeholders in the region to apply the concepts

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Highlights of DN Activities

• Conducting Localised CBDM training programmes in
  India and Sri Lanka
• Art and Poster Competition in the region on
  Seeing Disasters Differently in 1998 and
  publishing the booklet by the same name.
• Workshops to discuss the issue of better regional
  cooperation
• Building up a network of partnerships through the
  region, which includes governmental
  organizations, NGOs, academic institutions and
  community members

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Current Initiatives

• South Asia Policy Dialogue led to the Delhi
  Declaration
• The first SAARC-level policy conference on
  Disaster Risk Reduction at Vigyan Bhawan, New
  Delhi on August 21-22, 2006.
• This meeting paved the way for a Road Map for
  Regional Cooperation as part of the South Asias
  response towards the growing threat of natural
  disasters and the challenge of their management.
• The main organizers are, National Institute of
  Disaster Management (NIDM) in New Delhi,
  Practical Action South Asia Programme based in
  Colombo Sri Lanka and Duryog Nivaran - the South
  Asian network for disaster mitigation with its
  secretariat in Islamabad, Pakistan.

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South Asia Disaster News Service (SADNS)

• South Asia Disaster News Service (SADNS) is an
  information pool on disaster risk related news,
  views, comments, analysis, interviews, articles,
  editorials, reportorial and case studies from
  across South Asia. The core objective of SADNS is
  to track pre-disaster risk, report occurrences
  and subsequent responses in member countries.
  Moreover, SADNS aims to serve as a ready
  reference on disaster risk reduction in South
  Asia. SADNS can be accessed at www.duryognivaran.o
  rg

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South Asia Disaster Report 2005 Tackling with
Tides and Tremors

• This is the first report on disasters on South
  Asia by Duryog Nivaran. The report contests the
  stereotyping of disaster at policy, planning and
  implementation level and seeks to understand,
• How hazards turn into disasters
• What were the consequences of the Indian Ocean
  Tsunami (December 2004), the Himalaya earthquake
  (October 2005) and Mumbai floods (July 2005) on
  people, infrastructure, and development
• How did state and non state actors including
  local and international communities respond to
  these major natural disasters

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Continued

• Why some disasters are reported prominently and
  some remain invisible
• What are the existing institutional arrangements
  addressing complex emergencies in South Asia
  and
• What could be an alternative framework for
  effective disaster risk reduction in the region?

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Disaster Dispatch An Occasional Newsmagazine

• Disaster Dispatch is a Newsletter aimed at
  collecting, indexing, and disseminating news,
  views and research updates on natural disasters
  and social conflicts in South Asia . It intends
  to serve as a backgrounder for policy, media and
  disaster related organizations in the region.
  Previous copies of Disaster Dispatch can be
  accessed at http//www.duryognivaran.org and
  http/www.syberwurx/jrc

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DN Book Shelf

• Gender Dimensions in Disaster Management A Guide
  for South Asia (2003)
• Livelihood-Centered Approaches to Disaster
  Management A Policy Framework for South Asia
• Disaster Communication- A Resource Kit for Media
  (2002)
• Traditional Wisdom of Rainwater Harvesting An
  Overview from South Asia (2001)
• Assessing Participation (1996)
• South Asian Women Facing Disasters, Securing
  Life (1997)
• Understanding Vulnerability South Asian
  Perspectives (1998)

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DN Book Shelf

• Defeating Disasters Ideas for Action (1999)
• Seeing Disaster Differently Visions and
  Suggestions (1999)
• South Asian Series on Vulnerability Reduction
  No.2 Food Security Strategies Under Drought
  Hazard A Case Study of Milamperumawa (1997)
• South Asian Series on Vulnerability Reduction
  Impact of Drought on Livelihood and Food
  Security of Farmers in the Dry Zone of Sri Lanka
  The Case of Vegetable Farmers in Yodakandiy
  (1998)

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DN Book Shelf

• Nine booklets on Food and Water Security South
  Asia Case Study Series.
• Craft in the Aftermath of Disaster Generating
  Independence as well as Incomes, India.
• Harvesting Rainwater A Means of Water Security
  in Rural Sri Lanka.
• Fallows and Village food security in rain fed
  areas, a case study from India.
• Food and water security in times of malaria
  emergency, case study from Gujarat.
• Floods and desserts - a case study from Rajastan
  , India
• The Vulnerability of invisible workers, India.
• Strengthening vulnerable communities from natural
  disaster reduction, India.
• Technical briefs on tsunami and earthquake
  recovery and rehabilitation

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Way Forward

• Recently established disaster management cell by
  SAARC and hosted by National Institute of
  Disaster Management (NIDM) India has engaged DN
  in advisory capacity to develop a roadmap for
  regional disaster risk reduction in South Asia.
• Keeping in view the wealth of knowledge and
  experience pooled by the DN members, it is timely
  to develop and deploy and expand DNs resources
  and learning with an aim to inform, influence,
  strengthen and streamline ongoing initiative on
  national and regional disaster management in
  South Asian countries. These initiatives can also
  be taken as a strategic reference point to the
  Hyogo Declaration issued at the World Conference
  on Disaster Reduction held in January 2005 in
  Kobe, Japan. The Hyogo Declaration underscores
  the importance of strengthening cooperative and
  synergistic interactions among various
  stakeholders and promoting voluntary partnership
  for disaster risk reduction.

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• Struggle continues

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• Thank you!