<< Programmes - Crisis Prevention & Recovery

Preparing for Coming Storms:

Disaster Risk Reduction Programme

Location:
Nationwide
Period:
2008 - 2011
Corporate Thematic Area:
Crisis Prevention & Recovery
2008 Budget Estimate:
US$ 700,000
Implementing Partners:
Department of Disaster Management and Office of the President and Cabinet
Contact:
Howard Standen
Disaster Risk Reduction Advisor
P.O. Box 30135
Lilongwe 3, Malawi
Office: +265 (0) 1 773 500, Ext. 242
howard.standon@undp.org

Malawi is landlocked, resource poor, rain dependant, and overwhelmingly rural with high population growth rates and limited arable land. Malawians, especially the 65 percent below the national poverty line, are vulnerable to a wide range of shocks and hazards. These include natural hazards such as droughts (one in every three to five years), floods (every year) and storms (every year) as well as man made hazards such as air and water pollution, disease epidemics and economic shocks. Failure to adequately consider, plan for and mitigate the impact of these shocks and build the resilience of affected communities will undermine Malawi’s attainment of the Malawi Growth and Development Strategy (MGDS) and the Millennium Development Goals.

International experts forecast rising temperatures, shifts in rainfall patterns and more droughts in some areas of the world, together with more extreme weather events. Although the likely impact of climate change cannot yet be specified for Malawi with a high level of confidence, forecasts for Southern Africa indicate that it is likely to face some of the most extreme climate changes.

Malawi is particularly vulnerable to rising temperatures and erratic rainfall for three main reasons. One is Malawi’s high dependence on natural resources. Second, the majority of Malawians rely solely on maize, a highly sensitive crop, for their livelihoods. Third is the existing vulnerability—the poorest farm the most marginal lands and are likely to be highly affected. This emphasizes the need for pro-poor plans to reduce current and future risks.

The Government of Malawi (GoM) is a signatory to the Hyogo Framework for Action, which means that it has committed to substantially reduce disaster losses of social, economic and environmental assets of communities and countries by 2015.

UNDP support focuses on helping GoM implement this framework. In the UN System, UNDP is mandated with capacity building, coordination and management and planning for risk, while other agencies, such as WFP are mandated to respond to disasters. The MGDS recognizes the need to reduce risk, especially to vulnerable populations, through a focus on social protection and disaster risk management. Until recently, the approach to disaster management has been reactive, with emphasis placed on coordinating and implementing emergency response. In support of this shift to Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR), UNDP is supporting the Department of Disaster Management Affairs (DoDMA) to elaborate a national disaster risk reduction strategy and integrate DRR in government policies and programmes. The DRR programme emphasises the importance of preparedness and mitigation planning and includes a focus on climate risk management, given the likely impacts of climate change on the Malawian population.

What the Hyogo Framework for Action means for Malawi
In January 2005, 168 Governments, including that of Malawi, adopted a 10-year plan to make the world safer from natural hazards at the World Conference on Disaster Reduction, held in Hyogo, Japan. The Framework offers guiding principles, priorities for action, and practical means for achieving disaster resilience for vulnerable communities. The Department of Disaster Management Affairs is the designated agency in the Government of Malawi. It must, in collaboration with sectors and districts, assess where Malawi is in terms of Hyogo priorities for action and what areas need to be targeted. The next step is to develop procedures for managing risk and for reviewing national progress. An important consideration will be whether to adopt relevant international legal instruments.

To improve emergency management and response systems and their coordination mechanisms, DRR Programme provides direct support on activities as well as capacity building for national and district level authorities. UNDP is supporting the Government to develop a National Disaster Risk Management Policy and Operations Manual. The main elements of the programme are due to be implemented during 2008. It has also supporting DoDMA to develop flood contingency plans in the four most vulnerable districts in Malawi and has reviewed the UN/Red Cross national flood contingency plan.

Flood contingency planning
UNDP has supported the Government through DoDMA in strengthening national capacity to respond to floods and other emergencies since 2001. The UNDP approach developed following the last major floods in 2001 through providing support to the DoDMA and District Assemblies to strengthen emergency coordination, information collection and dissemination, and monitoring functions. Seven district Flood Contingency Plans were developed under the project, and District Humanitarian Affairs Officers were trained in disaster preparedness and response planning, information management, and assessment practices, etc.

This year UNDP has combined remaining funds from this project and flood disaster budget to support DoDMA to activate contingency plans in the four most vulnerable districts. For example, UNDP has worked with DoDMA and the World Bank in developing a situation analysis of the situation in the Shire River Valley, the most flood prone area of the country. The study will look at both preparedness and mitigation measures and assist in the development of a DRR strategy for the area, thereby assisting in moving beyond the cycle of emergency response.

The programme has also supported a DoDMA and MoF economic and financial study of DRR and supported the development of DRR sensitization material targeting DoDMA staff to raise awareness of DRR and climate change related issues.

UNDP is playing a crucial role in facilitating appropriate coordination arrangements between the Government, UN and Red Cross to respond to floods and other types of disasters, and in strengthening Government capacity in these areas. The direct beneficiaries of the project will be local communities who bear the brunt of disasters, especially vulnerable women. The programme will continue through the end of the programme cycle in 2011 with possible extension beyond that date.