Post-disaster Housing
Reconstruction
Challenges for effective community participation
Zabihullah Sadiqi “Wardak”
zabihullah.sadiqi@qut.edu.au
Dr Vaughan Coffey
v.coffey@qut.edu.au
Associate Professor Bambang Trigunarsyah
bambang.trigunarsyah@qut.edu.au
CRICOS No. 00213J
Queensland University of Technology
Community Participation:
Participation
Importance
http://www.afghanistan.gc.ca/iwglobal/utilities/FileProcessor.aspx?file=
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• Local communities and the survivors of a disaster play a crucial role
in post-disaster reconstruction and their participation ultimately
determines project success.
• Members of the affected community have the most knowledge about
their own communities and specific building requirements, together
often with a good technical knowledge of appropriate building
techniques and materials, it is critical to involve them when
conducting community needs assessments and when planning
reconstruction projects.
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Community Participation:
Problems
• Although government agencies (GOs), International funding bodies
and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) broadly appreciate the
value of community participation, the principle of community
participation is not evident in the veracity of reconstructions already
carried out on the ground.
• Reconstruction projects are often designed and managed in ways
that best cater for the interests of large players leaving little or no
room at all for grassroots participation.
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Community Participation:
Challenges
http://northshorejournal.org/rebuildingthe-ancient-irrigation-canals
Political and social pressure:
• Community participation requires adequate time for planning and
organising, and yet governments tend to refrain from involving
communities in reconstruction projects as this may slow down the
impression that reconstruction is speedily progressing.
• Effective participation requires involvement from multiple
stakeholders, and as such, there is a risk of the process being
influenced and affected by a particular group.
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Community Participation:
Challenges
http://www.afghan-web.com/gallery
Lack of effective communication and cultural
awareness:
• Lack of effective communication and substantial awareness of the
local culture leads to poor post-disaster reconstruction outcomes.
This is particularly true when reconstruction is to be executed in
collaboration with international organisations that have limited
understanding of the local culture.
• Conducting community needs assessments without absolute
knowledge about the local culture negatively impacts on any
effective community participation in the process of post-disaster
housing reconstruction.
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Community Participation:
Challenges
http://blogs.abcnews.com/photos/uncategorized/afghan_women_burqa_nr.jpg
Gender imbalance in community participation:
• Throughout the whole history of disasters and their aftermaths, the
female population has suffered far greater losses of life, shelter and
livelihood opportunities than the male population and this trend is
quite likely to continue in the future.
• Female population is generally misconceived as being incapable of
contributing to the actual reconstruction effort. Therefore, and as a
result of such prevailing prejudice, their potential for effective
participation is often disregarded.
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undp.org.af
Conclusion
Post-disaster reconstruction projects are often designed
poorly due to the lack of absolute understanding of the
local culture and needs. Community participation is
usually misconceived as being the main reason for
delays in project delivery, and as such, hasty decisions
without local participation frequently result in houses that
are neither socio-culturally appropriate nor supportive of
livelihood.
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Thank You
CRICOS No. 00213J
Queensland University of Technology