Challenges and Opportunities in Post Disaster Interventions: the Role of Academic Institutions in Disaster Management

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Challenges and Opportunities in Post Disaster
Interventions the Role of Academic Institutions
in Disaster Management

• Bahadar Nawab, PhD, Associate Professor COMSATS
  University Abbottabad, Pakistan

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Scope of Presentation

• Discuss the strength and weakness of different
  stakeholders in post disaster situation
• Explore opportunities where the academia and
  research institutes can contribute to overcome
  some of those weaknesses and possibly introduce a
  new approach to relief, rehabilitation and
  reconstruction interventions

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Introduction

• Due to its geophysical and geopolitical
  situation, Pakistan is prone to frequent natural
  and man-made disasters and crises that
  continuously engage the government, humanitarian
  and relief agencies
• The five major disasters (2005 earthquake, 2008
  Swat IDPs and 2010, 11, 12 Flood) in the recent
  years of 21st century caught the attention of
  national and international community
• Along with so many positive aspects, these
  disasters also exposed many institutional,
  managerial, financial, technical issues and
  research loopholes in the emergencies, relief,
  rehabilitation and reconstruction efforts of
  government, donors, I(NGOs) and politicians

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Introduction

• Response to disaster are often inadequate as
  complex situations demand the need for
  coordinated and complex responses
• Therefore, humanitarian assistance after disaster
  has become a topic of academic, practical, and
  political concern

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Relief, Rehabilitation and Reconstruction
Approaches

• From the 1960s onward, humanitarian action was
  based on a linear model focusing on relief
  assistance, and when the disaster/conflict was
  over, development assistance would then be
  provided
• In the 1980s, the continuum model of relief and
  development was formulated, bringing about the
  concept of rehabilitation, which bridges the gap
  between relief and development activities

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Relief, Rehabilitation and Local Participation

• The question is, how to effectively carry out
  relief and rehabilitation?
• Different approaches are being used, however
  studies such (De Zeeuw 2001 Anderson 1999
  Nyheim, Leonhardt, and Gaigals 2001 Quinn 2002)
  take note of local capacities
• Their focus has remained deductive and allowed
  international organizations to determine
  opportunities for intervention by the recipient
  state and civil-society organizations in relief
  and rehabilitation, instead of the other way
  around

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Disasters in Pakistan and CIIT Abbottabad
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2005 earthquake
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Swat IDPs
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2010-11-12 Flood
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COMSATS Abbottabad and Flood 2010
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CIIT Initiatives
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Evaluation of Several Mega Project

• Evaluation Action Against Hunger (ACF) project of
  humanitarian support to conflict and flood
  affected population of KPK, Pakistan
• Evaluation of USAID project in flood affected
  areas of Punjab and KPK on agriculture inputs and
  Cash for Work
• WATSAN component in the Mission of the Embassy of
  Kingdom of Netherlands for Endline Evaluation of
  Partnership for Development of Allai
• Evaluation of FAO intervention carried out under
  the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) in
  NWFP and Baluchistan provinces, Pakistan

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Lesson Learned from Post Disaster Intervention of
CIIT

• Research shows that the interventions in the
  disaster struck areas were not cost effective
• Most of the donors money disappeared as an
  administrative cost and the affected and needy
  people got very little
• Most of the interventions were without proper
  need assessment and not target oriented
• The assistance provided was not according to the
  needs, expectation and requirement of the
  affected population

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Lesson Learned from Post Disaster Intervention of
CIIT

• The donors and the implementing partners could
  not design and implement the beneficiaries
  selection criteria, therefore, the powerful and
  resourceful people get the maximum share and the
  poor people are further marginalized
• The quality of the intervention is usually poorly
  selected and in most cases not relevant to the
  environment and culture of the affected
  population

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Lesson Learned from Post Disaster Intervention of
CIIT

• Most of the interventions are not based on any
  research and scientific survey
• The academia and research centers are in most
  cases not consulted and involved in relief and
  rehabilitation stage after disaster
• The rehabilitation phase is usually started
  without proper identification and understanding
  of gaps

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Lesson Learned from Post Disaster Intervention of
CIIT

• More than 50 water supply schemes, latrines and
  other WASH related interventions implemented
  during the relief and rehabilitation phase in the
  earthquake affected are no more working
• The water quality of more than 60 WSS in the
  earthquake affected areas are microbiologically
  and chemically contaminated
• There is was very low short-term benefit of
  agriculture sector intervention in the earthquake
  affected areas

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Lesson Learned from Post Disaster Intervention of
CIIT

• To overcome those shortcoming and fill the gaps
  research-based interventions are needed in
  disaster affected areas where the interventions
  are made after proper investigation and
  understanding the effected people needs,
  expectation and cultural acceptability
• The focus of the interventions should be for
  example on low-cost, sanitation, low-cost water
  supply and treatment systems and hygiene
  promotion
• The flood affected areas should be used as a
  research centre where students and faculty should
  continuously monitor the acceptance and
  performance of the interventions

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Lesson Learned from Post Disaster Intervention of
CIIT

• It is extremely important at the design stage, to
  have mechanism to assess the key risks and
  challenges and, mitigate these risks and
  challenges during design and implementation.
• Women need to be actively engaged in the project
  activities, through innovative approach in view
  of culture and traditions. It is extremely vital
  to increase their participation in the project
  activities.
• The project design should have been flexible to
  adjust with evolving challenges not foreseen at
  the inception stage