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212Natural and human-made disastersNational budgets fordisasters tend toprioritize relief andemergencyresponsesBox 8.15 Lessons in risk reduction from CubaCuba’s integrated system of disaster risk management hassucceeded in saving many lives and has built resilience beyond thelevel that might be expected from the country’s economic status.Between 1996 and 2002, six hurricanes hit Cuba, causing 16 deathsin Cuba out of the total of 665 deaths they collectively caused.What is Cuba doing right?Central to Cuba’s successful risk reduction is the government’sstated priority that its fundamental commitment during ahurricane is to save lives. The country’s risk reduction plan anddisaster preparedness structures support this commitment to savelives through the following:• a disaster preparedness plan, which incorporates a specificfocus on the most vulnerable, provides for monitoring theirsituation and adapts plans to address their specific needs;• the national civil defence structure, which uses sub-nationalgovernment at the provincial, municipal and local level fordisaster preparedness and response (in most disasters, localknowledge and leadership play key but unacknowledged rolesin disaster risk reduction; the Cuban model incorporatesthese as central);• practical, effective lifeline structures, with particular emphasison mass evacuation and use of safe secure shelters;• a ‘culture of safety’ that creates the trust and awarenessnecessary to motivate people to cooperate and participate inrisk reduction;• citizen participation by incorporating community mobilizationin a three-tiered system of participation in planning, communityimplementation of lifeline structures and the creation andbuilding of social capital.Source: Thompson, 2007Since 75 per cent of Cuba’s 11 million people are urban, thecountry’s disaster preparedness plan has a strong focus on beingoperational in urban areas.Cuba’s model also owes a lot to its unique system ofgovernment and its socio-economic model, which has consistentlyaddressed risk reduction through policies of social and economicequity and poverty reduction. These policies have produced ‘multipliereffects’ that enhance risk reduction in many ways. The adultpopulation is 100 per cent literate and therefore can access educationalmaterials about disasters, and all children are exposed todisaster preparedness in school curricula. There is an adequateroad system in the country that facilitates speedy evacuation andbuilding codes are enforced, which reduces the element of highlyvulnerable substandard construction. Approximately 95 per cent ofthe households in the country have electricity and therefore canaccess information about disasters through radio and television.Finally, the intricate web of social, professional and political organizationsin the country provides organizational structures that canbe quickly mobilized in disaster. Surprisingly, the economic crisistriggered by the collapse of the Soviet Union has not affectedCuba’s success in protecting the lives of its population from hurricanes.The Cuban government is unique in that it has paid anequal amount of attention to the structural and physical aspects ofdisaster preparedness, but also created a ‘culture of safety’ throughsuccessful education and awareness campaigns. It has also demonstratedthe central importance of management capacity andpolitical will in successful risk reduction. This holds out real possibilityand hope for other countries, rich and poor alike, facing thegrowing dangers of natural hazards.…bilateral andmultilateral donors… have a history ofsupporting disasterreconstructionthe capital city, Georgetown, from flooding. Political andpersonal rivalry between the leaders of city and nationalgovernments is, at times, interpreted as a cause for delay orwithdrawal of funds.National budgets for disasters tend to prioritize reliefand emergency responses. Prevention and mitigation are lessattractive as funding choices. After all, governments get lesspraise from the electorate and the international communityfor reducing disaster risk than they do for a speedy andgenerous emergency response. 79 A number of countrieshave special calamity funds to cover the additional costs ofreconstruction (e.g. India, the Philippines and Colombia),while some in Latin America and the Caribbean make specialmention of municipal-level support for risk reduction. 80Social funds and public works programmes are morenormally associated with large-scale rural disasters as mechanismsfor supporting livelihoods; but they have potential forurban areas too. In Nicaragua, following Hurricane Mitch in1998, social fund financing was released through fourregional offices and used to build shelter, water and sanitationsystems, and bridges. This was essential for enablingcritical services and market access to smaller towns and ruralsettlements. 81Like national governments, bilateral and multilateraldonors, including international development banks, have ahistory of supporting disaster reconstruction. The AsianDevelopment Bank (ADB), the Inter-American DevelopmentBank (IDB), the UNDP, the World Bank and the AfricanDevelopment Bank all have policies covering natural disastersand implement projects in this area. Only the UNDPfunds relief; but all are active in reconstruction. With theexception of the African Development Bank, disaster reconstructioncan be funded by drawing on funding alreadyallocated to development projects. The World Bank’sapproach to disasters, for instance, has tended to be reactiverather than tactical (see Box 8.16). Disasters have beentreated as interruptions in development rather than as a riskthat is integral to development. Few Country AssistanceStrategies or Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs)supported by the World Bank mention disaster risk.Recent initiatives, notably by the IDB, the CaribbeanDevelopment Bank, the DFID and the Deutsche Gesellschaftfür Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ), among others,indicate a reappraisal and recognition of the value of investingin risk reduction. For example, in 2006, the DFIDcommitted to allocating approximately 10 per cent of its