june 2011 southasiadisasters.net...

southasiadisasters.netJune 2011 1

southasiadisasters.net June 20112

Concern Worldwide is a non-governmental, international,

humanitarian organisation dedicatedto the reduction of suffering andworking towards the ultimateelimination of extreme poverty in theworld's poorest countries. Ourmission is to help people living inextreme poverty achieve majorimprovements in their lives whichlast and spread without ongoingsupport from Concern. To achieve thiswe engage in long term developmentwork, respond to emergencysituations, and seek to address theroot causes of poverty through ourdevelopment education and advocacywork.

In continuance of our long-standingcommitment to these multi-level butconcerted efforts, we have organisedour actions across five programmeareas of Education, Emergencies, HIV& AIDS, Health and Livelihoods.

Our continuous engagement in andsupport for communities in situationsof conflicts and natural disasters hasbeen with a focus on addressing the'underlying risk factors' throughappropriate institutionalmechanisms of risk reduction atvarious levels in society. We startedour work through immediatesupport to local organisations andcommunities in the aftermath of theOrissa Super Cyclone in 1999 andsince then we have actively respondedto many emergencies across India.Capitalising on many of theseopportunities we have successfullydemonstrated the potential of 'build-back-better' by linking relief,rehabilitation and development(LRRD) and supported building

resilient communities in thesedisaster-prone areas.

While most of the initiatives andprocesses towards this end aredesigned and developed as part of theEmergency Programme, cross-sectoral learning and participationhas been instrumental in shapinginnovative, adaptive and integratedaction plans and strategies. And thishas become absolutely critical in thewake of an emerging risk regimemarked by unprecedented surprisesand transformations because of achanging global climate andemerging world order. Our currentStrategic Plan (2010-2015)categorically underscores this bystressing on the need to mainstreamor integrate DRR into all ourprogrammes. The Disaster RiskReduction Strategy (February 2008)reiterates this as 'reducing risk isfundamental to sustainabledevelopment for extremely poorpeople'. One of our multi-countryinitiatives (in India and Bangladesh)at the interface of Climate ChangeAdaptation and Disaster RiskReduction is being supported by theEuropeAid Development andCooperation.

Our initiatives in these areas havebeen widely recognised andsupported globally. TheHumanitarian Aid and CivilProtection Department of theEuropean Commission (ECHO)through its Disaster Preparedness(DIPECHO) programme issupporting us under its 6th ActionPlan for South Asia. The project'Building Disaster Resilience ofVulnerable Communities in Orissaand West Bengal' aims to strengthen

the capacities and enhance theresilience of many of the at-riskcoastal communities. The overalldesign of the project is based onlearning gathered as part of ourprevious work during Orissa Flood(2008) and Cyclone Aila (2009) in Puriand the Sunderbans respectively.Systematic efforts of resiliencebuilding at community, school andindividual levels will be throughcapacity building, enhancing thereach of various social securityschemes (through mobile-phonebased tracking) and ensuring theavailability of and accessibility tomicro-insurance (as an appropriatemarket-based tool for risk transfer).

Our emphasis on 'risk analysis as abasis for contextual analysis' will beoperationalised in this projectthrough community-led Hazard,Vulnerability and CapacityAssessment (HVCA) processes andappropriate risk mitigationmeasures. At the larger institutionallevel the project aims to link disasterrisk reduction into developmentplanning and through some of theseinitiatives it will contribute to theinternationally agreed HyogoFramework of Action (HFA, 2005-2015) on 'Building the Resilience ofNations and Communities to Disasters'.

I acknowledge the timely support ofthe Humanitarian Aid and CivilProtection Department of theEuropean Commission (ECHO) andwish the project communities, projectteam, partners and resource agenciesall success in their endeavors towardsdisaster resilient communities inIndia.

– Dipankar Datta, Country Director,Concern Worldwide India

PREFACE

Building Disaster Resilient Coastal Communities


ORGANISATIONAL PERSPECTIVE

Risk to Resilience: A Concern Worldwide Perspective

Concern Worldwide is a non-governmental, international,

humanitarian organisation dedicatedto the reduction of suffering andworking towards the ultimateelimination of extreme poverty in theworld's poorest countries. We workwith the mission of "helping peopleliving in extreme poverty achievemajor improvements in their liveswhich last and spread without on-going support from Concern."Concern has a strategic commitmentto DRR and takes a mainstreaming/integrated approach to DRR in all itsprogrammes. We recognise the factthat disasters make people poor andvulnerable. Disasters also adverselyaffect hard won development gainsbrought about through years ofprogramming. Thus DRR is at theheart of our policy of reducing risksas fundamental for sustainabledevelopment.

Our approach to DRR focuses onrobust risk analysis processes inidentifying hazards that mostadversely affect lives, livelihoodsand assets of poor communities.Outcomes of the risk analysis guideConcern Programmes to helpextremely poor work their way outof poverty by protecting their livesand livelihoods from adverse impactof disasters. This is achieved throughfour approaches: Advocacy to changepolicies and practices that increase thevulnerability of people, Preparednessto increase external and internalcapacity to withstand disasters,Mitigation to reduce the impact ofhazards, and Effective and timelyemergency response whencommunities are overwhelmed andneed external support.

Concern focuses on deepening it'sunderstanding on DRR throughcapacity building to informprogramme choices, prioritisation,design and implementation. We have

Ero

de

d R

ive

r E

mb

an

km

en

ts in

th

e S

un

de

rba

ns,

Co

nce

rn W

orl

dw

ide

, P

ho

togra

ph

er

: Jy

oti

raj P

atr

a.

Disaster Risk Reduction Strategy Concern WorldwideConcern Worldwide DRR approaches paper.

established linkages with other DRRactors and platforms. The HyogoFramework for Action (HFA) is at thecore of our DRR work globally. Whilethe HFA is extensive, key gaps remainin the framework. Concern has takena gap filling approach to the HFA andfocuses on addressing key constraintareas of HFA nature and impact ofconflict, poor governance and climatechange. Our approach focuses oneffective DRR in countries with weakcivil society, political instability orcomplex emergencies. It also tries tofocus attention on neglected localiseddisasters which effect fewer peoplebut create extensive risk because oftheir repetitive nature andcumulative impact. Our focus is onthe interconnectedness between DRRand climate change through multicountry programmes addressingboth issues. The focus is also oncreating a sound evidence base forreduced vulnerability to futurehazards through an effective DRRmonitoring system to adapt tocontinuously changing parameters.

Our focus is on risk analysis as theprimary driver for programmedecision making processes. Based onthe organisations focus on povertyand the need for poor communities

to manage their own risk in asustainable development process weaim to focus on targeting the poorestpeople in the poorest area globally.Our aim is to target the positiveimpact of DRR in countries withweak governance and civil society.We seek to document the analysis,practice and impact of DRR workareas of extensive risk. Risk isunderstood within concern in all itsramifications including protractedconflict and complex emergencies.Our focus is on documentation ofreduced vulnerability through bettermonitoring and evaluation of DRRprogrammes. Documenting goodpractices is a key strategy forevidence based advocacy withinConcern DRR programmes.

We work in strategic collaborationwith other key actors andstakeholders such as nationalgovernments, bilateral donors, theacademic community, the UN, WorldBank, other INGOs and the Red CrossRed Crescent Movement to influencepolicy development and practice.

– Chiranjeet Das, Team Leader,DIPECHO Project,

Concern Worldwide India


Graphical presentation of DIPECHO supported projects

ACTED

Save the Children

Handicap

International

Building Disaster Resilience of Vulnerable

Communities in Orissa and West Bengal

Specific Objective: To strengthen and enhancedisaster resilience of high risk communitiesin coastal districts of Orissa and West Bengalin Eastern India by developing capacities ofcritical stakeholders to prepare against andeffectively respond to natural disasters.

Concern Worldwide

The Humanitarian Aid Department of the European Commission (ECHO) is supporting ACTED (Agency forTechnical Cooperation and Development), Save the Children, Handicap International (HI) and Concern Worldwide

under its sixth Disaster Preparedness (DIPECHO) action plan for South Asia.

Through innovative and sector-specific approaches to understand and address the underlying risks of communitiesthese organisations in partnership with the local civil society organisations have been working towards a commongoal of 'building disaster resilient communities'.

Jyotiraj Patra, Programme Officer (Advocacy),Concern Worldwide India

THEMATIC

Concerted and Systematic Efforts of DIPECHOPartners for Disaster Resilient Communities in India

Building disaster resilient communities

and local governance structures in the

Sundarbans

Specific objective: To build thepreparedness, response capacity, andresilience of children, communities and localgovernance to disaster risk reduction andclimate change adaptation in the Sundarbans.

Make Community Based

Disaster Risk Management

Inclusive in South Asia

Specific Objective: To enhancecapacities of persons withdisabilities by understandingtheir needs, providing assistivedevices and linking them withmainstream developmentactivities including communitybased disaster risk reductionactivities.

Sunderbans Disaster

Preparedness and Risk

Mitigation Project

Specific Objective: To reducethe risk and strengthen therecovery of the target populationfrom floods, cyclones, and othernatural disasters which the areais prone to.

Disaster-

Resilient

Communities


4. Handicap International

Result Area 1: The communities of selectedvillages, including persons with disabilities andtheir families, are better aware and prepared tomitigate, respond and positively cope withnatural disasters through inclusive practices.

Result Area 2: Positive inclusive community-based practice in disaster risk management isadvanced as a model at local, state/district andnational level for generating improvements inpolicy and practice.

Coverage: In 28 multipurpose cyclone shelterareas (59 Coastal communities) of 6 CoastalDistricts of Orissa and in 6 communities DasparaSumati II Gram Panchayat of Sagar Island in South24 Parganas district of West Bengal.

Partner: Orissa State Disaster ManagementAuthority (OSDMA)

1. Concern Worldwide

Result Area 1: High risk coastal communities have analysednatural disaster risks, updated VDMPs and integrated DRRinto their village development plans and have implementedrisk mitigation measures at community level.

Result Area 2: Vulnerable schools have audited school safetycomponents, identified and implemented disaster mitigationmeasures, prepared disaster preparedness plans and raisedawareness on disaster risk among children and other relevantstakeholders.

Result Area 3: High risk communities’ awareness and accessto and participation in micro-insurance schemes in Orissaincreased.

Coverage: Across 11 villages from 3 gram panchayats of Puri(Satyabadi Block)and South 24 Parganas (Patharpratima block)districts in the states of Orissa and West Bengal

Partner: Society for Women and Development (SWAD), Centrefor Youth and Social Development (CYSD), Sabuj Sangha

2. ACTED

Result Area 1: Build capacity of the communityby forming task forces (first aid and search &rescue) and trainings for masons and engineers(on disaster resistant shelter and water/sanitationfacility construction).

Result Area 2: Help prepare disaster managementplans with panchayats and schools, and increaseawareness through provision of materials andthe holding of public events for efficient earlywarning systems.

Result Area 3: Ensure heavy participation ofpanchayats, community members and otherNGOs so that the knowledge, awareness, andtools for disaster risk reduction are sustained wellpast the project's completion

Coverage: Vulnerable communities of Hingalganjand Sandeshkhali I blocks in West Bengal

3. Save the Children

Result Area 1: Strengthened capacities to develop andimplement child-centered, community-based DRR/CCAmechanisms and strategies.

Result Area 2: Develop and implement school-based DRRmechanisms and strategies.

Result Area 3: Livelihoods of targeted community membershave been made more resilient to the impact of disasters andclimate change.

Result Area 4: Child-centered and community-based modelsof DRR/CCA are demonstrably incorporated withingovernment policy and practice in West Bengal.

Coverage: 30 Villages spreading across 7 gram panchayats inthe blocks of Sandeshkhali I and II in the district of North 24Parganas, West Bengal.

Partner: Dhagagia Social Welfare Society


The east coast of India is one of themost vulnerable regions to some

of the climate-induced naturalhazards like cyclones, flooding anderosion because of changes in the sealevel. Coasts and coastal communitieshave been bearing the brunt ofvarious natural hazards, most ofwhich are hydro-meteorological andgeologic in nature. Over the yearsthere has been a systematic increasein the intensity and frequency of someof these natural hazards because ofglobal environmental changes andthe related sea-level changes. TheOrissa Super Cyclone (1999),Mahanadi Floods (2008) and CycloneAila (2009) brought about large-scaledamages and transformations in thesocio-economic conditions of thecommunities as well as the ecosystemthey are dependent on for theirlivelihoods.

Faced with the challenges of suchlarge-scale devastations includingloss of human lives and destructionof vital infrastructures, communitiesof practitioners in the field of disasterresponse and emergency have beenworking towards a more pro-activestrategy. Such a paradigm shift hasresulted in the design, developmentand implementation of the DisasterRisk Reduction (DRR) frameworkwhich addresses the underlyingvulnerabilities of these communitiesand strengthening their capacities toface any sort of disaster. Heads of thestates, government leaders, policymakers, international developmentand humanitarian agencies andmedia groups convened for the ThirdSession of the Global Platform forDisaster Risk Reduction (GFDRR) atGeneva (8-13 May 2011) to discusssome of such issues structured aroundthe theme 'Invest Today for a Safer

PROJECT OVERVIEW

Building Disaster Resilience of VulnerableCommunities in Orissa and West Bengal

Tomorrow – Increase Investment inLocal Action'.

Yet, helping the poor in India toreduce their risks effectively remainsa distant dream. It has beenrepeatedly experienced that locallyembedded institutions andpartnerships are more likely to beeffective than external interventions.Thus, enhancing coping capacities ofthe communities at risk, includinglocal institutions is a key to riskreduction in India.

Concern Worldwide has beenworking in India since the 1999 OrissaSuper Cyclone, providing support tolocal organisations to implementrelief, rehabilitation anddevelopment work. In last decade orso, Concern has responded to severalemergencies in India. Concerninterventions support the actions ofstate and national governments andalso recognise the need for promotingand complying with the Hyogo

Framework for Action 2005—2015.Recently in January 2011, Concerncompleted an ECHO-supportedproject on 'Early RecoveryProgramme for AILA Affected Peoplein Sundarbans, West Bengal'. Toconsolidate and strengthen thedisaster preparedness measuresinitiated during the early recoveryphase, now Concern Worldwide Indiahas received support from theEuropean Commission's DirectorateGeneral for Humanitarian Aid(ECHO) under its DisasterPreparedness Programme(DIPECHO) for 'Building DisasterResilience of VulnerableCommunities in Orissa and WestBengal'. This project has specificobjective to strengthen and build upthe capacities of these at-riskcommunities through systematicefforts at the community, school andindividual level. This will be doneby developing their capacities toprepare against and effectivelyrespond to natural disasters.

Ma

pp

ing a

s p

art

of

Ba

selin

e S

urv

ey,

20

11

, C

on

cern

Wo

rld

wid

e,

Ph

oto

gra

ph

er

: Jy

oti

raj P

atr

a.


The project will help the high riskcoastal communities in the statesof Orissa and West Bengal analysenatural disaster risks, updateVillage Disaster ManagementPlans (VDMPs) and integrate DRRinto their village developmentplans and have risk mitigationmeasures implemented atcommunity level.

The vulnerable schools from thetargeted locations will haveaudited school safety components,identified and implementeddisaster mitigation measures,prepared disaster preparednessplans and raised awareness ondisaster risk among children andother relevant stakeholders.

Most of these communities andtheir life-supporting assets are notadequately covered and insuredunder any of the existing insuranceproducts and schemes. The projectwill work towards an appropriateinsurance-demand surveymechanism to design a suitablemicro-insurance scheme on a pilotbasis in the state of Orissa toincrease high risk communities'awareness and access to andparticipation in micro-insuranceschemes in Orissa.

All these activities and plans willbe mobilised through andundertaken by the communitiesthemselves including themitigation measures. This built-inmechanism of communityownership will ensuresustainability of the project outputsand outcomes. More importantlythe project has a strong advocacycomponent to inform, influenceand impact policies andprogrammes aimed at disasterresilience at various levels ofgovernance.

– Aparna Shah,All India

Disaster Mitigation Institute

Hazard Profile of Orissa

Orissa has been traditionally vulnerable to multiple disasters due to itsunique geo climatic conditions. Due to its sub-tropical littoral location,

the state is prone to tropical cyclones, storm surges and tsunamis. Its denselypopulated coastal plains are the alluvial deposits of its river systems. Therivers in these areas with heavy load of silt have very little carrying capacity,resulting in frequent floods, only to be compounded by breached embankments.The state is also affected by disasters like heat waves, epidemics, forest fire,road accidents etc. Orissa is highly vulnerable to climate change. It has a 480km coast line that is subject to climate-mediated cyclones and coastal erosion.

The major disasters which occurred in Orissa are:• 1999 Orissa cyclone which killed more than 15000 people and caused a

damage of 4.5 billion US Dollars.• 2006 floods: 18,912 villages, 67.39 lakh population and 4.90 lakh hectare

crop areas of the state were affected. 105 persons lost their lives due toflood/heavy rain. 28,327 hectares of crop area were under sand cast due tothe floods.

• 2008 floods: 110 people were killed and 4,30,856 people were evacuated tosafer places.

• 2009 floods: In all, 15 districts were affected which claimed 56 lives.Population affected was 3.94 lakh.

Hazard Profile of West Bengal

West Bengal, a part of Bengal Delta, has a long recorded history of floods.At present 42.3% of total area of the state is susceptible to floods spread

over into 110 blocks in 18 districts. As West Bengal is the fourth most populatedstate in India and has a massive population density, the impact of the disasterbecomes more severe. Floods and cyclonic storms are the major disasters thatoccur almost every year in different parts of the state and inflict huge loss oflife and property. Besides, the state is also vulnerable to other natural calamitieslike hail storm, thunder squall, drought, landslide, erosion and sometimesearthquakes because of its geo-morphological, climatic and seismic conditions.

The major disasters in West Bengal are as follows:• 1978 floods: Affected 235 blocks in Midnapore, Howrah, Hooghly

Murshidabad, Nadia, 24 Parganas, Bankura, Burdwan, Birbhum, Malda,Puruliya. Human life lost were 1370, houses damaged were 13,61,338; andpopulation affected was 156.25 lakh.

• 2000 floods: Besides flash floods triggered by incessant torrential storms,the disaster is also accredited to the opening of sluice gates of dams. Thefatalities counted to the tune of 1262.

• 2007 floods: Heavy rain from tropical depression in the Bay of Bengalcaused flooding leading to 51 deaths, and affecting 3.2 million people.

• 2009 Aila cyclone: Damaged houses were over 1 million in the state. Affectedan estimated 6.8 million people and left 138 individuals dead. Although,18 of the 19 districts in the state affected, the situation most precarious inSouth 24 Parganas and North 24 Parganas districts of the Sunderbans area.

(Sources: www.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in, www.reliefweb.int,www.osdma.org, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov.)(Source: www.orissadiary.com)


COMMUNITY RECOVERY

Implementation and Technical Support

Implementing PartnersThe implementing local NGO partners for the project 'Building Disaster Resilience of Vulnerable Communities inOrissa and West Bengal, India' include Society for Women Action Development (SWAD), and Center for Youth andSocial Development (CYSD) from Puri district of Orissa and Sabuj Sangha from South 24 Parganas of West Bengal.These partners are duly registered under the Societies Registration Act and Foreign Contribution Registration Act.They already have strong presence and rapport with the communities and local administration in the area. All of themhave been Concern partners for several years.

Society for Women Action DevelopmentSWAD is a registered non-government organisation,based in Puri district of Orissa, committed to the cause ofwelfare and development of rural poor women andweaker section of society. It was emerged from the dreamof a group of dedicated volunteers on 15th January, 1989.

Its Mission is to:• To facilitate the process of development of

marginalised and vulnerable community with focuson gender equity; and

• Reducing poverty as well as improving quality oflife through capacity building, improvement oflivelihood option, greater access to self-governanceand basic rights, services and needs.

SWAD is operating in Satyabadi, Gop, Puri Sadar, Pipiliand Kakatpur blocks of Puri district and Tikabali blockof Kandhamal district of Orissa within its package ofdevelopment programmes. Presently the activities havespread over 160 villages. The focus areas of interventionare women empowerment, community capacitybuilding, and community based disaster management.

Center for Youth and Social DevelopmentCYSD is a 29 year-old non-government, non-profitorganisation, established in 1982 at Bhubaneswar, Orissa.It works for the development of deprived andmarginalised people in the remotest areas of Orissa witha vision of facilitating a society where communities areable to make their own choices, meet their survival needs,and lead a self-reliant and sustainable life with dignity.

The target groups are rural poor women and children,poverty stricken underprivileged and marginalisedsociety, victims of natural calamities.

Programs undertaken by SWAD are:• Promotion and formation of Self Help Groups

(SHGs). SWAD has promoted 206 SHGs in 58 villages.• Women empowerment through self help.• Income generation programme.• Awareness camp on women trafficking.

Its mission is to enable marginalised women, men andchildren to improve their quality of life. To this end,CYSD uses issue based research to influence policies froma pro-poor and rights based perspective. It also works toensure transparent, gender sensitive, accountable anddemocratic governance by building the capacities ofpeople and organisations in participatory planning.

CYSD’s approach focuses integrated, inclusive andsustainable development with special emphasis on RuralLivelihoods, Elementary Education and ParticipatoryGovernance. It also addresses issues such as GenderEquity, Disaster Management, Health and Sanitation,Child Rights, HIV/AIDS prevention and tribaldevelopment. At present, through direct interventions,CYSD reaches out to 1,52,486 poor families across 680villages of 73 GPs (8 blocks) of 5 districts in state.

– Jitendra Kumar Sundaray, Senior Programme Manager, CYSD

– Binapani Mishra, Secretary, SWAD

Aw

are

ne

ss c

am

p o

n w

om

en

tra

ffic

kin

g,

SW

AD

An

nu

al r

ep

ort

20

10

-11

.

Ru

ral Liv

elih

oo

ds,

CYS

D A

nn

ua

l

rep

ort

20

09

-10

.


Concern Worldwide India will besigning MoUs for the programmeimplementation with all the threelocal NGO partners - SWAD, CYSD,and Sabuj Sangha.

The local NGO partners were selectedby assessing their ability on meetingminimum financial andorganisational standards, rapportwith communities, their previousexperience and performance on theground, including their commitment

Sabuj Sangha

Sabuj Sangha is a non-profit, non-governmentdevelopment organisation working in West Bengal. Itwas established in 1954 in the Sundarbans region of WestBengal and registered under Society Registration Act in1975. Its work has since spread north throughout South24 Parganas and into Jalpaiguri. It seeks to improve thelives of people less fortunate through participation andempowerment.

Its Mission is: Sustainable development of marginalisedand vulnerable people to ensure a quality life throughempowerment, education, information, infrastructuredevelopment, healthcare service and economic self-reliance through convergence of services provided bylocal self governments.

Its operational areas are:• Health & Nutrition• Water, Sanitation and Hygiene• Education and Protection• Livelihood and Women's Empowerment• Environment and Disaster Response

The activities include:• Providing quality and affordable health care services.• Training and employing local women to work as

community health workers.• Ward nursing training for local women.• Installation and renovation of new and existing tube-wells.• Construction of low-cost household latrines.• Providing immediate emergency response, reducing

vulnerabilities of communities etc.

to reducing vulnerability, clarity ofvision and mission, and ability tomeet the desirable standards andunderstanding of the local context.All local NGO partners have wellestablished Boards of Directors,staffing structure, and organisationalpolicies on HR and Finance. Theyhave quality front-line staff.

The roles of the local NGO partners(CYSD, SWAD, and Subuj Sangha)will be to conduct the HVCAs, update

VDMS and integrate DRR intomainstream development plans i.e.VDPs, school safety audits, actionplanning, demand survey for micro-insurance, roll out pilot micro-insurance scheme, training sessionsand support implementation andmonitoring of disaster risk mitigationmeasures in communities andschools, including selection ofbeneficiary groups for specific actionsproposed under this action.

Role of Implementing Local NGO Partners

– Ansuman Das, Secretary, Sabuj Sangha

He

alt

h a

nd

Nu

trit

ion

, Sa

bu

j Sa

ngh

a

An

nu

al r

ep

ort

20

10

-11

.

DIPECHO Project Launch in Orissa, May 2011, Concern Worldwide, Photographer : Jyotiraj Patra.


Technical PartnersThe technical partners of Concerninclude the All India DisasterMitigation Institute (AIDMI),Ahmedabad which has vastexperience in DRR, school safetyaudit, micro insurance etc., HandicapInternational, and Women'sOrganisation for Socio-CulturalAwareness (WOSCA), Orissa.

Concern has partnership with AIDMIsince 2009 and they are providingcapacity building, research anddocumentation support to Concern.They will provide their expertise inthe areas of CBDRR, school safetyaudit and planning, risk transfer etc.Concern has a formal agreement withAIDMI for technical support andcapacity building of Concern staff andpartners for DRR promotion. The roleof AIDMI will be to develop / adaptmethodologies for CBDRR, schoolsafety audit and demand survey onmicro-insurance, includingdevelopment of training materials,

conducting trainings, research, anddeveloping publications proposedunder this action. Concern will liaise,coordinate, and work jointly withvarious government bodies,authorities and departments toreceive their support andcontributions in the implementationof proposed activities at variouslevels. They will mainly act inadvisory capacities.

Concern has been collaborating withHandicap International formainstreaming disability intodisaster management andpreparedness as part of the justconcluded DIPECHO programme.Handicap International is alsohelping Concern to mainstreamdisability into Concern's otherprogrammes. Concern and HabitatInternational consulted each otherand agreed to collaborate for theDIPECHO project to promotedisability mainstreaming andinclusion in the disaster risk

reduction programme. HandicapInternational would provide theservices of its technical experts toConcern to sensitise programme teamand mainstream disability in theoperational villages.

WOSCA has been a Concern partnersince 2002. Under this project, WOSCAwill train local DRR volunteers to usethe window based mobile phones toupdate the status of welfare schemesmeant for the most vulnerablesections of the society as well asMGNREGA schemes, TPDS and otherschemes on a regular basis throughthe mobile phone. Information willbe transferred to a central serverthrough SMS/MMS for generatingreports. The local organisation willshare the report with thecommunities, who then will share thereports with government officialsand elected representatives. Thesimilar mobile based setup will beused to communicate early warningsand other related information at thecommunity level as a pilot.

Women's Organisation for Socio-Cultural Awareness

participatory learning and working together for humanresource management.

The focal area of work for WOSCA is women'sempowerment through participatory initiatives and jointaccountability. WOSCA has been giving high importanceon socioeconomic development of village womenthrough promotion and strengthening of Self HelpGroups (SHGs). Until 2007, there are more than onehundred SHGs, promoted and strengthened by WOSCA.It has been able to initiate two partner NGOs forpromotion of SHGs.

Activities:• Awareness Generation Programme• Bio-Diversity Conservation Programme• Livelihood Generation Programme• Vocational Training• SHGs and IG activities• Food Security & Empowerment Project• Integrated Nutrition & Health Project• Watershed Development• Environment Education in School System and other

programs.

WOSCA was established as a not for profit socialorganisation in 1993. WOSCA has been involving itselfin a multifarious, people-centric development activitiesthrough need-salient interventions in the areas of health,environment, HRD, and economic empowerment ofwomen in particular.

Mission: Transformation of thoughts into deeds throughpeople's participatory actions, people's organisations,

– Dhartari Raut, Secretary, WOSCAPublic Distribution System at Singhpur Gram Panchayat in Keonjhar,

2011, Concern Worldwide, Photographer : Jyotiraj Patra.


KNOWLEDGE SHARING

Informed Media Engagement for Resilience Building

– Jyotiraj Patra, Programme Officer (Advocacy), Concern Worldwide India

Going by the adage 'media rulesthe minds', media (both print

and electronic and an emerginglandscape of the 'social media') playsa vital role in shaping andstrengthening an informed-publicopinion about and participation inissues of greater public good insociety. These informative andtransformative roles of media waspretty evident during the IndianOcean tsunami (2004), the Sichuanearthquake in China, Cyclone Nargisin Myanmar in 2008 and morerecently during the Japan Earthquakeand Tsunami (March 2011). Realisingthe potential of this vital institutionand to further enrich its contributionto the ongoing efforts on disaster riskreduction, both global and local, theUnited Nations International Strategyfor Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR)very recently published a manual formedia, aptly christened 'Disasterthrough a Different Lens: Behind EveryEffect There is a Cause'.1

Ms. Margareta Wahlström, UNSpecial Representative of theSecretary-General for Disaster RiskReduction underscores this emergingrole of media in the Foreword in thismanual as:"You are much more than a simple mirrorof society. You can help make populationssafer and change the world from a cultureof reaction to a culture of prevention."

And this is exactly what the globallyagreed Hyogo Framework of Action(2005-2015) tries to achieve by'Building the Resilience if Nationsand Communities to Disasters'.2 HFAPriority for Action 3 is to 'Useknowledge, innovation andeducation to build a culture of safetyand resilience at all levels' andidentifies 'Public awareness andmedia' as one of the key activities.

There has been a growing emphasison supporting effective media

engagement in DRR at various levels.The European Commission'sHumanitarian Aid Department(ECHO) under its disasterpreparedness programme (DIPECHO)supported BBC World Service Trustas part of the 4th Action Plan 'to bringthe media, NGOs and governmenttogether and encourage them to buildlinkages for highlighting the need fordisaster risk reduction.'3

1 http://www.preventionweb.net/files/20108_mediabook.pdf.2 http://www.unisdr.org/we/inform/publications/12173 http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/trust/whatwedo/where/asia/india/2008/06/

080603_india_disaster_project_overview.shtml4 http://www.preventionweb.net/english/professional/news/v.php?id=19836&a=email5 http://mangroveactionproject.org/maps-mangrove-newsletter/map-newsletters/

map2636. http://www.orissadiary.com/CurrentNews.asp?id=26460)

No Media group Language/Date Title of the news item

1. Orissa Post English/ 6 May 2011 From Risk to Resilience2. Orissadiary.com6 English/6 May 2011 Concern Worldwide India

launches DIPECHO supportedproject for Vulnerable CoastalCommunities in Odisha

3. The Samaj Oriya/6 May 2011 'Prakritika Biparjaya ParichalanaSamparka re Karmasala'(Workshop on NaturalDisaster Management)

4. Samaya Oriya/7 May 2011 'Prakritika Biparjaya r samnakaribaku Prasikyana Absayaka'(Capacity Building Essentialto face Natural Disasters)

The news item published in www.orissadiary.com was further captured atthe international level and published at Prevention Web and MangroveAction Project (MAP) News (263rd Edition, May 14, 2011)5.

In order to initiate greaterstakeholders' participation in theproject 'Building Disaster Resilienceof Vulnerable Communities in Orissaand West Bengal', ConcernWorldwide India along with itspartners (SWAD, CYSD and SabujSangha) organised a project launch onMay 5, 2011 at Puri, Orissa. Thefollowing table highlights some ofthe media coverage of the launch:

India: Concern Worldwide launches project for vulnerable coastal

communitiesDate:9 May 2011

Source(s):Orissa Diary

The launch of the DIPECHO supported project entitled ‘Building Disaster Resilience of Vulnerable Communities

in Orissa and West Bengal’ comes at a time when world leaders are gathering in Geneva, Switzerland for the

Third Session of the Global Platform on Disaster Risk Reduction.

“Opportunities for learning through this DIPECHO supported project are enough and through collective

action and learning all of us will be able to demonstrate a successful approach of disaster resilience at the

community level”, said Mr. Dipankar Datta, Country Director at Concern Worldwide India.

View full story [ext. link]


CAPACITY BUILDING

Initiating Community Resilience: BuildingCapacity and Developing Methodology

Background:Hazard mapping; and vulnerabilityand capacity assessment is the firststep of any disaster management plan.Many times it has happened that thisexercise is somehow not followedproperly. Committees and task forcesat the community level are formedwithout proper hazard mapping,resulting in not getting goodresponse against its efforts on disasterpreparedness and risk mitigation.Therefore, before working on findingsolutions for any disaster; it isimperative that communities firstunderstand and map out the realhazards and assess if they have somecapacities to minimise and prepareagainst the risks.

As a coping mechanism to deal withany risk, micro-insurance isrecognised as an important tool toprotect the poor. Micro-insuranceintends to offer protection to the pooragainst specific risks in return forpayment of regular premiumsproportionate to the likelihood andcost of the risk involved. Micro-insurance, when available ataffordable prices, is now recognisedas an important financial serviceproviding some protection to thepoor in the event of personal andnatural disasters.1 In the absence ofinsurance, poor people often patchtogether resources from multiplesources to meet expenses related toill health, death of a family member,property loss, or other unexpectedshocks. However, these resourcesusually are not enough to fully covertheir losses and over time theybecome over used, less accessible andmore expensive, further limiting theability of poor people to managerisks. Understanding this reactive

mode is a starting point in thinkingabout insurance for the poor. Thechallenge for micro-insurance is toturn risk management from a reactiveto a proactive process. This beginswith an understanding of demand.The demand for micro-insurancerelates directly to the nature of risksand the risk management strategiesof low-income households.2

Introduction:Concern Worldwide India is one ofthe few agencies who haveresponded to the cyclone Ailaaffected communities in Sundarbansregion of West Bengal state. Concernfully respected community demandsidentified by its local partner, SabujSangha and carried out successfulinterventions in the areas ofemergency relief and desalination oflocal ponds in the Sundarbans. The

European CommissionHumanitarian Organisation (ECHO)funded Concern for this communitybased and local led emergencyintervention. Building on thissuccessful and inclusive intervention,Concern is implementing a one-and-a-half year recovery project in targetvillages of West Bengal and Orissaaffected by 2009 cyclone Aila.

The All India Disaster MitigationInstitute (AIDMI) – a technical partnerof Concern Worldwide India – hasdeveloped training manual, tools ofimplementation on Hazard,Vulnerability and CapacityAssessment (HVCA) for the projectteam so that they can achieve theproject objectives from the targetvillages. AIDMI has consolidated its10 years of experience to working in13 disasters in India and beyond in

De

ma

nd

fo

r S

pa

ce T

ech

no

logy

in O

riss

a, D

ece

mb

er

20

09

, AID

MI.

1 http://www.bwtp.org/arcm/mfdm/Web%20Resources/Briefs/Brief_7.pdf2 http://www.microinsurancenetwork.org/publication/fichier/

Guidelines_for_Market_Research_on_the_Demand_for_Microinsurance.pdf


preparing knowledge products for atraining on HVCA of key staffmembers of the implementingagencies. Since 2004, AIDMI has alsobeen offering a disaster insuranceprogramme – Afat Vimo coveringhouseholds and small businesses for19 different types of disasters,including floods, earthquakes,cyclones, fires and riots. The schemeis backed by two public insurancecompanies which collaboratedclosely with AIDMI in designing theproduct, setting premiums,determining cover and underwritingthe risk.3 Through Afat Vimo, AIDMIhas covered over 6,000 poor andvulnerable disaster affected clients –mostly men and women runningsmall enterprises – in Gujarat, Bihar,Tamil Nadu, and Jammu andKashmir. Based on this experience,AIDMI will be conducting a workshopto finalise the methodology to carryout a demand survey for micro-insurance in the target villages ofOrissa under the Disaster PreparednessECHO (DIPECHO) supported ConcernWorldwide India project.

Objective of Training on HVCA andWorkshop on Micro-Insurance:The training is meant to buildconceptual capacity of the project staffof Concern as well as the projectpartners' teams so that they can betterunderstand needs of the targetaffected communities, workaccording to project goals and take

actions accordingly for buildingdisaster resilient communities.

And the objective of conducting theworkshop is to develop amethodology to carry out a demandsurvey for micro-insurance and buildthe capacity of the localimplementation NGO partners toconduct the demand survey in thetarget 8 villages of Orissa. This willhelp in designing a suitable micro-insurance scheme that can be rolledout in the target villages of Orissa toprotect the livelihoods and assets ofthe poor and vulnerable communitymembers.

Target Audience:The training and workshop is likelyto be attended by the key project teammembers of Concern WorldwideIndia as well as team members oflocal implementation agencies fromOrissa and West Bengal such as Centrefor Youth and Social Development(CYSD), Society for Women ActionDevelopment (SWAD), and SabujSangha.

About Conduct of the Training:The project will initiate villagespecific risk reduction measureswhich require HVCA in projectcovered villages. This training andmaterial developed - in form ofmanual and tool - for the participantswill provide detailed information ofdifferent aspects of HVCA and

Participatory Risk Appraisal (PRA)tools. Broadly, this training manualcovers the following topics:1) Disaster Situation in India2) Terminologies and Concepts of

DRR and HVCA3) Community-Based Disaster Risk

Assessment4) Participatory Risk Appraisal

Tools and Practice5) Identification of Felt Needs and

Planning

In addition to this manual, AIDMI hasalso developed HVCA tool specificto the project needs. This will helpinvolved agencies to work accordingto project goals and take actionsaccording to the target village needsfor building disaster resiliencecommunities in West Bengal andOrissa.

About Conduct of the Workshop:The workshop would be divided intotwo parts. In the first part,introduction to the concept of micro-insurance would be provided and itsneed, its importance, common micro-insurance products, and challengesencountered in designing a micro-insurance scheme would bediscussed. And, the second part wouldrevolve around the demand surveyfor micro-insurance. Need forcarrying out a demand survey,methodology for doing so, and thetool to undertake the demand surveywould be discussed and finalised inthe later part of the workshop. Tofacilitate the workshop, a backgroundnote has also been prepared on'Finalising Methodology for Micro-Insurance Demand Survey' whichcovers all details including the toolfor conducting the demand survey.

With workshop on micro-insuranceand training on HVCA, ConcernWorldwide India launches itseighteen-month project with localpartners in West Bengal andOrissa.

– Sanchit Oza with Aparna Shah,All India Disaster Mitigation Institute

HV

CA

tra

inin

g, M

ay

20

11

, AID

MI.

3 http://www.microinsurancenetwork.org/newltr/fichier/MiN_Newsletter_20_EN.pdf


KNOWLEDGE SHARING

Latest Knowledge Products

COURSE MATERIAL ON HAZARD, VULNERABILITY AND CAPACITYBUILDINGThe training module on HVCA is to help equip DRR field practitionerswith contextual theories and practical tools that can be applied in DRRwork. The module has been developed on the basis of AIDMI's experiencein India and south Asia and can be applied in DRR work globally. Themodule provides key considerations around gender and disabilityinclusiveness. The module is a comprehensive document and provides adetailed description of analytical tools and exercises with a focus oncommunity level processes.

HAZARD, VULNERABILITY AND CAPACITY ASSESSMENT TOOL

The HVCA tool is developed based on the project areas. The tool is anattempt to enable DRR practitioners in general and partner organisationsin particular facilitate HVCA's at the community level as per agreedstandards and practice. It is a participatory and empowering process toassess the risks that people face in their communities, their vulnerabilityto those risks, the capacities they possess to cope with a hazard and recoverfrom it when it strikes. This tool addresses the most important aspects ofHVCA ensuring enabling work with people at a community level andensuring project and community priorities are aligned and met. The toolfinalised with the partner agencies. This will help to take actions accordingto the target village needs for building disaster resilience communitiesin West Bengal and Orissa.

During the year 2010-2011, AIDMI has published 43 knowledge products to combine various issues evolving in thefield of disaster risk management. This covers various topics such as Disaster Risk Reduction; Disaster Managementin South Asia; Safer Schools; Human Rights; Road Safety; Eco-systems, Climate Change Adaptation, and DRR;Community Managed DRR, Hyogo Framework for Action and so on. Such knowledge products reach out to a numberof disaster and development practitioners and other interested readers in India, South Asia, and beyond.

BACKGROUND NOTE FOR FINALISING METHODOLOGY FORMICRO-INSURANCE DEMAND SURVEY

Micro-insurance offers a viable alternative for low income households tomanage their risks. However, it is necessary to find out what the poor wantto transfer their risk: what is their demand for risk pooling and risk transfer.This can be done through a demand survey. Through the micro-insurancedemand survey, an effort will be made to increase the access and participationof poor communities in micro-insurance schemes. The background note onfinalising the methodology for micor-insurance demand survey is a valuableresource for understanding the needs, approaches and challenges of micro-insurance in India and facilitating practical work.

– Vishal Pathak, All India Disaster Mitigation Institute


IMPACT ASSESSMENT

A first large empirical cross-country assessment of the

impact of disaster micro-insurance inthe South Asia region was conductedin 2010 capitalising on the prevalenceof disaster-prone communities acrossSouth Asia, many of which weremixes of both households with andwithout disaster micro-insurance – afertile ground for rigorouscomparative analysis. The study wasinitiated as a part of the Regional RiskTransfer Initiative (RRTI), an effort ledby AIDMI to expand and strengthenmicro-insurance options for the poorin South Asia. It was a joint initiativeof AIDMI, International Institute forApplied Systems Analysis (IIASA) andProVention Consortium. The micro-insurance clients of the following fiveorganisations offering disaster micro-insurance products were surveyedthrough this study: Basix (India), SelfEmployed Women's Association(SEWA) India, All India DisasterManagement Institute (AIDMI) India,Yasiru (Sri Lanka), and Proshika

Disaster Micro-Insurance for Pro-Poor RiskManagement: Evidence from South Asia

(Bangladesh). Non-clients or controlgroup was also surveyed.

The study found that the impact ofmicro-insurance is tremendous: itprotects the most vulnerable fromdisaster impact and prepares them fora crisis.

The following 6 priority activities andinterventions are recommendedbased on the findings of this study:1. Utilise the client community to

increase awareness and grow.Micro-insurance organisationsshould work to create innovationways to involve the communityin outreach and awarenessgeneration of disaster micro-insurance.

2. Micro-insurance is not a panaceafor disasters. There is a need topromote long-term disaster riskreduction in conjunction withmicro-insurance. Use disastermicro-insurance as an entrypoint for further risk reduction.

Support existing micro-insurance organisation, withstrong outreach and communitylinkages, to develop programsfocused on risk education,structural mitigation (i.e.retrofitting), preparedness, andenhanced coping mechanisms.

3. Promote the review oforganisations' claims processesto ensure that money is gettingto clients in the most effectiveand efficient way possible. Thisincludes examination of servicesto help with claims, support fortimely review of claims, andinformation management ofdecisions.

4. Promote increased participationby women in disaster micro-insurance programs. Thisincludes a review of products andservices and modifications basedon the specific needs of womenin the region.

5. Look for the biggest critic. Theproof of impact of disaster micro-insurance cannot be determinedsolely through surveys of clientsbut must be done through thesurvey of people who havedropped out the program..

6. Use of impact assessments forfuture product development.Impact measurement is a criticalcomponent of research anddevelopment for micro-insurance products in South Asiaand other regions. There is aneed to develop future productofferings based on rigorousempirical findings of impactassessments.

– Aparna Shah,All India Disaster Mitigation Institute

Aila

ea

rly

reco

very

pro

ject

, M

arc

h 2

01

1,

AID

MI.


Do you wish to receive this publication regularly? Write to AIDMI ([email protected]). The publication will be sent byE-mail. Your comments help southasiadisasters.net remain an effective and informative resource for regional issues of disasterrisk management. Please contribute comments, features, reports, discussion points, and essays about your work. Today!

PRINTED MATTERBook-Post

Ms./Mr.

ALL INDIA DISASTER MITIGATION INSTITUTE

411 Sakar Five, Near Natraj Cinema, Ashram Road, Ahmedabad–380 009 India

Tele/Fax: +91-79-2658 2962E-mail: [email protected], Website: http://www.aidmi.org, www.southasiadisasters.net

june 2011 southasiadisasters.net...

Documents