The brutal cycle of inequality in disasters

For more than thirty years, 13 October has been the International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction. The date marks an opportunity to promote a global culture of disaster risk reduction and recognise the steps made towards preventing and reducing the risk of disasters around the world. This year, we take a particular focus on the close relationship between disasters and inequality.  

“Disaster risk reduction requires an all-of-society engagement and partnership. It also requires empowerment and inclusive, accessible and non-discriminatory participation, paying special attention to people disproportionately affected by disasters, especially the poorest.” – The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction

While it may be easy to look at both inequality and disasters as separate challenges to sustainable development, they are in fact deeply interconnected. Inequality creates the conditions for vulnerability and exposure to disasters. Disasters, in turn, intensify that inequality. The rise in climate-related hazards threatens to worsen this; over the last fifty years, a weather, climate, or water related disaster has hit every day on average, and 91% of deaths from these happened in developing countries.

But inequality doesn't stop at national borders. Within countries and communities, the impacts of disasters are not felt equally. Women and children face unique challenges during and after disasters which make them up to 14 times more likely to die in disasters than men. Persons with disabilities, who make up 16% of the world's population, face similar issues due to the various physical, attitudinal, communicative and institutional barriers imposed on them by society.  

With recent projections suggesting that by the year 2030, we will be facing an 1.5 significant disasters per day, the importance of breaking the cycle of inequality in disasters is essential.

Breaking the cycle

One such initiative working to break down the cycle of inequality in disasters is the Strengthening Disaster Risk Governance and Recovery Capacities project.

This five-year initiative, funded by the European Union, is a collaborative effort between United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the European Union (EU), the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), and the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS). The joint programme is dedicated to enhancing disaster risk governance, strengthening recovery capacities, and building resilience in vulnerable communities.  

As part of the project, UNDP are working across our Country Offices in Togo, Burundi, Cameroon, Ethiopia, and Kenya, to strengthen disaster risk governance and support integrated and risk-informed solutions. One example of the work underway is the recent interdisciplinary learning event “Integrating Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Adaptation into Development”, held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia from 3-6 October 2023.

At the learning event, presentations, panel discussions, group activities, and hands-on activities brought together mid-level government officials to draw lessons on integrated approaches to disaster risk reduction, climate change adaptation, and risk-informed development. Michael Wordofa of the Ethiopian Environmental Protection Authority attended the learning event and remarked it was a “great opportunity to get international insights and experiences on a couple of topics that are important to our context”.  

Mercedes San Roman, Project Manager for the Strengthening Disaster Risk Governance and Recovery Capacities project, explained that “as climate change impacts are becoming more evident and the costs of disasters are growing, it is increasingly urgent for disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation to be integrated into development planning and decision-making at all levels and in all sectors. Working together with national and subnational institutions of Ethiopia this week marks the beginning of this process that that we will continue supporting from the project”.

Building back better after Cyclone Freddy

Another key pillar of the project is the creation of resilient recovery for those affected by disasters across Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific. Building back better after a disaster means that the communities affected can be rebuilt in a way that addresses underlying inequality, promotes inclusivity, and ensures that no one is left behind.

To create resilient recovery under the project, UNDP recently joined the Joint Assessment Mission to Madagascar, Mozambique and Malawi, led by the African Union, to assess the damages caused by Cyclone Freddy. Cyclone Freddy is the latest example of extreme weather events in the region which are creating unprecedented crises when they make landfall in highly exposed and vulnerable countries. When Cyclone Freddy made landfall earlier in the year, communities that were still recovering from a severe 2022 cyclone season once again faced far reaching impacts on people, livelihoods, and infrastructure.

Eric Loubaud, UNDP’s Regional Specialist for Disaster Risk Reduction and Recovery, joined the assessment mission and expands on the importance of resilient recovery after disasters like Cyclone Freddy, “Such joint missions are of particular importance for jointly and coherently engaging with governments in building long term resilience for the most vulnerable who are hit inequitably by cyclones.” Recognizing the potential for increasing resilience and breaking the cycle of inequality in disasters, Eric adds “Despite their dramatic impacts, disasters such as these could become an opportunity to identify and address key vulnerability drivers and break the cycle of inequality by building back better and safer in recovery”.

On 17-19 October, the Twentieth Session of the Africa Working Group on Disaster Risk Reduction in Lomé, Togo, will bring together partners with the aim to work collaboratively to accelerate the implementation of disaster risk reduction activities across the continent and ensure that the brutal cycle of inequality in disasters is broken.