A ripple in development? - Channel Research

More positively, the second type of process reduced vulnerability in
many cases, by giving the poor access to good quality housing, and providing
them with livelihood opportunities that they had not previously
had. The evaluation was not able to find any document or study which
had quantified the proportions to which this occurred.
Initially, DRR was not a priority for agencies more focused on
immediate relief. However, agencies have paid more attention to DRR
in their tsunami work with each passing year. Added to the slow start of
DRR work is the time taken for DRR to take root. It may take decades
before a risk aware approach is fully internalised, as many other factors
cut across the process of improvement (such as conflict, which has
increased in Sri Lanka, or democratic change, in the Maldives and
Aceh). It is clear both from the survey of the affected population and
interviews with them that the process of internalisation has begun, at
least for the tsunami risk.
At the same time, the specialist bodies needed to support DRR are
gradually coming on-stream. The Masyarakat Penganggulangan Bencana
Indonesia (The Indonesian Society for Disaster Management) is a
network of NGOs which all can join, which was established in 2003,
designed to assist in learning from the need for better coordination and
management for the disasters that occurred in Indonesia from 99 to
2002. This society initiated the drafting of the disaster management bill
in Indonesia
However, it may take many years before these investments bear
fruit. Finally, it should not be forgotten that vulnerability to disasters is
indivisible from issues such as poverty, livelihoods, the interactions of
the state and civil society, and general development. Work in these areas
may reduce disaster risk without even having this as an objective. The
study found, that in most cases reductions in vulnerability were by-products
of other interventions (such as livelihood support), or of broader
changes in the context (such as the end of the conflict in Aceh), rather
than specifically as a result of DRR programmes.
Interviews in the three countries suggested that there is a broad
awareness of the risk of natural disasters. However, it is an open question
to what extent this awareness has been internalised to the extent
that it influences everyday development decisions. It will be some time
before the answer to this question is apparent.
Just before the tsunami, on December 15, 2004, the UK Secretary
of State for International Development proposed that, given that evidence
in support of increased investment in disaster risk reduction the
UK would allocate 10% of humanitarian response funding for risk
reduction 81 . However according to the OECD DAC Creditor Reporting
System donor commitments for disaster risk reduction were 2.7% of
81
Benn, H. (2004). Reform of the International Humanitarian System, ODI: Speech by Hilary Benn,
UK Secretary of State for International Development: 15 December 2004. Retrieved 28 Feb, 2009
95