[ For Employment and Income ]
ILO
Acknowledgements.
Table of contents
Abbreviations
1. Introduction
Searched in vain for a suitable quotation to start – something about planning or preparedness- may be some-one in ILO/CRISIS has a quote from the DG?
The Pre-Disaster Recovery Planning Guide (Employment and Income)
The guide is, as the title describes, a process for deciding what needs to be planned in advance of the next recurring natural disaster to facilitate a rapid and appropriate recovery response. Therefore the planning happens in advance of the natural disaster and is part of preparedness for the government response assisted by their partners.
Recovery is set within the context of disaster response as illustrated in figure 1.1 below, beginning with early recovery during the humanitarian relief phase and continuing with recovery leading into the resumption of national development.
Figure 1.1 (Early) Recovery
Source: UNDP Early Recovery presentation March 2008
This could be replaced by a modified version of Alfredo’s post conflict diagram if preferred
Disaster Terminology
There are several basic terms used frequently in relation to natural disasters and therefore a table of definitions is provided below to ensure a common understanding of the terms being used.
It is widely acknowledged within the disaster community that hazard and disaster terminology are used inconsistently across the sector, reflecting the involvement of practitioners and researchers from a wide range of disciplines. Key terms are used as follows for the purpose of this guidance note series:
A natural hazard is a geophysical, atmospheric or hydrological event (e.g., earthquake, landslide, tsunami, windstorm, wave or surge, flood or drought) that has the potential to cause harm or loss.
A recurring natural hazard is a geophysical, atmospheric or hydrological event (e.g., earthquake, landslide, tsunami, windstorm, wave or surge, flood or drought) that has the potential to cause harm or loss, which happens or appears once again or repeatedly*.
Vulnerability is the potential to suffer harm or loss, related to the capacity to anticipate a hazard, cope with it, resist it and recover from its impact. Both vulnerability and its antithesis, resilience, are determined by physical, environmental, social, economic, political, cultural and institutional factors.
A disaster is the occurrence of an extreme hazard event that impacts on vulnerable communities causing substantial damage, disruption and possible casualties, and leaving the affected communities unable to function normally without outside assistance.
Disaster risk is a function of the characteristics and frequency of hazards experienced in a specified location, the nature of the elements at risk, and their inherent degree of vulnerability or resilience.[1]
Mitigation is any structural (physical) or non-structural (e.g., land use planning, public education) measure undertaken to minimize the adverse impact of potential natural hazard events.
Preparedness is activities and measures taken before hazard events occur to forecast and warn against them, evacuate people and property when they threaten and ensure effective response (e.g., stockpiling food supplies).
Relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction are any measures undertaken in the aftermath of a disaster to, respectively, save lives and address immediate humanitarian needs, restore normal activities and restore physical infrastructure and services.
Recovery* describes development interventions that do not seek or lead to only rebuild or restore the damage or return to the status quo, but also address medium and long-term needs and improvements in policies, programmes, systems and capacities to reduce the risks from recurrent crisis and reach higher standards of living.
Early recovery** is a multi-dimensional process of recovery that begins in a humanitarian setting. It is guided by development principles that seek to build on humanitarian programmes and catalyze sustainable development opportunities.
Climate change is a statistically significant change in measurements of either the mean state or variability of the climate for a place or region over an extended period of time, either directly or indirectly due to the impact of human activity on the composition of the global atmosphere or due to natural variability.
Source: Tools for Mainstreaming disaster risk reduction: guidance Notes for Development Organisations, ProVention, 2007 and *ILO and **UNDP abridged
o Why this guide?
Post-crisis situations are often accompanied by high unemployment and under-employment, severe income drops, people dislocated from their usual community or home environment, IDPs, trauma victims and other disadvantaged groups of people. In such a situation, a primary concern is to promote opportunities for women and men to obtain (or regain) decent and productive work in conditions of freedom, equity, security and human dignity.
This guide aims to contribute to this process by focusing on reducing the risks to livelihoods prior to a natural disaster occurring, and improving the speed and responsiveness of the post-disaster recovery actions. It seeks to provide improved access to tools and examples of how to assist vulnerable sections of the population to recover from the effects of a natural disaster and at the same time improve the resilience of their livelihoods to future disasters. Every effort has been made to ensure that the proposals in this guide are suitable for incorporation into national and international disaster recovery frameworks.
o Who is the guide for?
The guide is primarily for governments of countries at risk from natural disasters, and their recovery/development partners. It is specifically targeted at the national bodies tasked with planning responsibilities and those responsible for disaster risk management and response. It is intended that the guide can be used as a basis for working together with line ministries, local authorities, private sector and civil society. Indeed, under the response option section, there are issues which need to be addressed by all of these parties.
o What does the guide contain?
Figure 1.2 below looks at various information, assessments and actions (both pre-disaster and post-disaster), which are relevant to the recovery process. Sections within the guide are responses to the various elements in the diagram and are briefly described below. All activities that take place post-disaster must be planned for, as far as is possible, prior to a disaster. Where specific activities cannot be planned, mechanisms must be in place to facilitate a rapid and appropriate response once the needs have been assessed.
Pre-Disaster / Post-DisasterInformation Management
National Level
Natural quick onset Hazard Mapping / Disaster Risk Assessment / Scenarios based on previous experience / Preparation of a Pre-disaster Recovery Plan / Humanitarian Response
Joint Damage Loss and Needs Assessment / Preparing Recovery Response based on PDRP
Early Recovery
Response / Implementation of Recovery Activities
Effects of Natural Hazards on employment and income , especially in the informal economy / Base-line data and information gathering
Vulnerability indicator for Informal Employment and Income / Possible Recovery Response Options
Local level
Areas at risk taken from the National Assessment / Disaster Risk Assessment at the Local Level for local employment and income / Scenarios based on previous experience / Humanitarian Response
Joint Damage Loss and Needs Assessment / Planning for Recovery with communities/ neighbour-hoods
Early Recovery
Response
Vulnerability of specific sections of the population (employment and income) / Base-line data and information gathering
Possible Recovery Response Options
Risk Reduction
Figure 1.2: A Framework for Developing a Pre-disaster Recovery Plan
Note: The chapters are as discussed in a meeting with AL-H, AC, MB, but I would suggest rearranging them and slightly changing the titles. Suggestion: (i) section 3 should be “Disaster Risk and Vulnerable Employment. Section 4 could then be “vulnerable sections of the population (employment and income)” (ii) re-arrange order of sections to be section 9 then 7 then 8 in line with the diagram above, (iii) it might be better to combine sections 4 and 5 together.
Section 1 provides the background to the development of the guide. The guide confines itself to the recovery aspects of recurring natural disasters, and in particular to recovery of employment and income. Although recognition is taken of emergency response and development issues, these are not addressed directly.
Section 2 presents the context of recurrent natural hazards, and their effects. The focus is then narrowed to look at the impact these disasters have on the means of earning income mainly, but not exclusively, within the informal economy.
Section 3 considers the current risk assessments being carried out at national level and proposes an option for the inclusion of vulnerable employment as an indicator. The resulting risks for employment and income in the informal economy would then be included in the disaster risk assessment and mapping exercise.
Section 4 looks at specific vulnerable sections of the population and how they are vulnerable in terms of their sources of income and therefore the risks they face when a disaster strikes.
Section 5 examines various disaster scenarios using case study damage, loss and needs assessments and attempts to extract the effects on livelihoods so as to develop patterns of impact.
Section 6 extends further the existing base-line data, which it would be advantageous to have prior to a natural disaster striking. The starting point is the baseline data presented in the Livelihoods Assessment Tool (LAT) developed by FAO and ILO. This is further developed to better incorporate non-agricultural livelihoods.
Section 7 deals with risk reduction in the recovery processes. This is confined to looking at considerations for “building back better” and improving resilience to threats to incomes from future disasters during the recovery phase.
Section 8 offers a post-disaster recovery planning approach for use at the local level, to plan and prioritise recovery activities with affected community groups, and local government
Section 9 puts forward possible recovery support options and discusses the data and preparation which could be carried out in advance of a recurring natural disaster, to enable a quick assessment of the post disaster situation and facilitate speedier and more appropriate responses. The options are only illustrations of what could be included as approaches to support recovery, they are not prescriptive and can only be used where previous experience would suggest they would be useful or as a result of the needs assessment. Also included are suggestions on risk reduction measures prior to a disaster.
Section10 provides a summary of the process and responsibilities for creating a pre-disaster recovery plan for employment and income. Included are suggestions for financing and management of the process and the data.
o How should the guide be used?
The guide should be viewed as a document which can be dipped into for information on specific topics or as a route through the decision-making processes and preparedness alternatives for reducing risks to livelihoods and preparing and implementing appropriate recovery options. The guide presents options for the reader to consider within the context of their own needs and priorities.
Background and context for the guide
The guiding principles for disaster prevention, preparedness and mitigation were established through the Yokohama Strategy and Plan of Action for a Safer World: Guidelines for Natural Disaster Prevention, Preparedness and Mitigation, World Conference on Natural Disaster Reduction, Yokohama, Japan, 23-27 May 1994 and the Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA) provide the basis for all efforts to improve disaster risk reduction and responsiveness.
The Conference resolved to adopt the following strategic goals:
(a) The more effective integration of disaster risk considerations into sustainable development policies, planning and programming at all levels, with a special emphasis on disaster prevention, mitigation, preparedness and vulnerability reduction;
(b) The development and strengthening of institutions, mechanisms and capacities at all levels, in particular at the community level, that can systematically contribute to building resilience to hazards;
(c) The systematic incorporation of risk reduction approaches into the design and implementation of emergency preparedness, response and recovery programmes in the reconstruction of affected communities.
This guide is being developed in the context of the International Recovery Platform (IRP) – a thematic platform of the International Strategy for disaster Reduction – contributing towards the fulfilment of the HFA. It is closely linked to the Post Disaster Needs Assessment (PDNA) initiative of the Intern-Agency Standing Committee Cluster Working Group on Early Recovery (IASC-CWGER), and the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (ISDR and the World Bank)
Employment and Income
The guide addresses principally the question of people’s employment and income, which in this guide is sometimes referred to as livelihoods. However, livelihoods also refer to a wider set of assets and their transformation through activities to produce livelihood outcomes, as proposed by DFID and adopted by many international agencies and governments. Therefore the different use of livelihoods as a description in this guide will depend on the context and content. Figure 1.3 below provides an overview of the DFID framework for Livelihoods.
Figure 1.3 Sustainable Livelihoods Framework
Source: The Livelihood Assessment Tool-kit, analysing and responding to the impact of disasters on the livelihoods of people, FAO, ILO, 2007
This guide is a living document and as such will evolve based on international experience and contributions to the post-disaster recovery of employment and income. It is hoped that as more tools and approaches are developed these will add to and improve the current guide.
Additional Background Information
1. Guidance note on Early Recovery, CWGER – UNDP BCPR, February 2008
2. Sustainable Livelihoods Guidance Sheets, DFID, October 2001
3. Employment in Response to Crises, PISO, Ruig-Gian, ILO, HEI, Geneva 2006
2. Hazards and their Effects on Employment and Income