Disaster Recovery and the Road Ahead - IGNOU

created by natural disasters, but are the result of interaction between political, economic and
social forces, frequently stemming from bad governance, failed economic policies and
inappropriate development programmes. RRD continuum must take into view all these realities
and conditionalities.
It is also important to introduce gender analysis into the RRD response, so as to avoid further
marginalization of women and the other disadvantaged groups. A gender-sensitive approach
helps to identify differing vulnerabilities of men and women to crises as well as their different
(and ever-changing) capacities and coping strategies. Vulnerability is a key concept, and may
be determined by membership of a particular ethnic or social group. Two other issues need to
be considered:
The first is the institutional separation of relief and development, which exists within most donor
organizations. Different criteria and procedures are applied to sustainability, funding and implementation
arrangements. The international response to chronic crises in particular may risk reflecting the
organizational and political priorities of implementing agencies, rather than the needs of disasteraffected
populations, and the vulnerability of those threatened by disasters.
The second issue is financial. Over time, the relief expenditure of Organization for Economic
Cooperation and Development (OECD) member states has increased multifold at a time when
overall aid programmes are tending to stagnate or even decline. For all the above reasons, it is high
time that we reconsidered our approach to LRRD, and examined the ways in which its impact and
effectiveness could be improved.
The new perspective that is gaining
relevance pertains to convergence
of relief, rehabilitation and
development. The basic premise
for Linking of Relief and
Rehabilitation with Development
(LRRD) holds the key to future
strategies towards disaster
rehabilitation. The development
policy often ignores the risks of
disasters and the need to protect
vulnerable households by helping
them to develop appropriate
‘coping strategies’. If relief and
development were to be linked,
these deficiencies could be
reduced. A comprehensive longterm
recovery plan should keep
Source: NDMA Annual Reports
into view the interlinkages between all the stages of disaster management, as well as the ‘connect’
between disaster rehabilitation, reconstruction and larger developmental planning.
The analysis of the LRRD problem makes it clear that the approach to economic, political and
social development in the developing countries should be more holistic than it has been until now.
At all the phases of their development, and not merely when a crisis is imminent. There is a need
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