On December 20, 2021, a man grabs onto barriers while he expects to be rescued in Shah Alam, Selangor, AFP/Getty Images Swim for Life: Reflection on Recent Floods in Malaysia Abstract. Floods are the most damaging natural calamity in Malaysia. Its growing frequency and size have resulted in significant financial and other intangible losses for the country. This short reflection essay highlights the complexities of assessing flood impacts and the importance of performing a thorough cost-benefit analysis. Additionally, post-flood government grants options are examined in order to assess the country's total flood economy scenario. It then concludes recommendations on how to prevent future incidents of floods. Key words: Flood; Survival; Economic Impacts; Cost-benefit analysis; Government Aid. Introduction The year-end monsoon season causes floods in Malaysia's eastern regions on a regular basis, but torrential rains have exacerbated the situation this year. Floodwaters swamped coastal regions in Malaysia, displacing nearly 40,000 people, according to the country's disaster agency, with at least one fatality for every ten individuals reported missing. Nearly 30 places in Pahang, Selangor, and Kelantan had rivers above the danger limit as of December 20, 2021. Many cities, towns, and villages were severely damaged. Street after street was lined with skips, into which so many people's valuables were thrown. People's hard-earned furniture and housewares, as well as intangible memories, were destroyed. Many individuals were forced to live in tents at flood evacuation centers due to the large number of homes damaged. Furthermore, despite the favorable main economic figures recorded in October, the huge floods that hit Peninsular Malaysia would have an influence on Malaysia's economic recovery. Economic numbers, particularly on private consumption, may reverse in December because of the flood. Although authorities are presently working for more complete data to quantify the floods' actual financial impact and even warning about the potential of last monsoon waves since the season hasn't yet reached its peak. Although flooding isn't one of the deadliest natural disasters, the economic harm it causes is significant. Looking back in history, the floods in Johor in 2007 cost approximately USD 605 million (US Dollars), making it the most expensive calamity in the last three decades. Experts predict that the latest floods will cause more economic damage than the floods of 2007. MALAYSIA FLOODING SCENARIO Malaysia has an equatorial climate, with continuous high temperatures and high relative humidity. The average annual rainfall in Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah, and Sarawak is 2,420 mm, 2,630 mm, and 3,830 mm, respectively, as per the Drainage and Irrigation Department (DID) Malaysia. Peninsular Malaysia's east coast, as well as Sabah and Sarawak's coastal areas see more rain than the rest of the country. Most of the rain falls during the northeast (November-February) and southwest (April-September) monsoons, with the former being far more powerful. Flood losses could be divided into two types: tangible and intangible Both parts can be further subdivided into direct and indirect flood-related losses. It is critical to gather flood loss data from a variety of reputable and ideally direct sources. Estimates for comparable or recurring events can be examined to see if they are consistent. The goal is to provide a flood damage estimation that may be used for planning and making key decisions. While tangible losses may be accurately valued in monetary terms, intangible losses are more difficult to measure. As a result, fatalities, injuries, the level of exposure, and the length of floods remain crucial indications of the magnitude of intangible losses. Any damages to buildings, resources, or history of societal or national importance will necessitate a separate appraisal to determine the true cost. Although the situation is not entirely dire, it does need political will and financing for precautionary measures or schemes to be undertaken. More specifically, for authority, whether at the state or federal level, to make an informed decision, cost-benefit analysis as well as a study of the advantages and disadvantages of alternative funding choices are necessary. COST-BENEFIT ANALYSIS A cost-benefit analysis is a method for weighing the potential benefits of an activity against the costs of the resources used, with money as the unit of measurement. The possible advantages that can be realized from a suggested flood management strategy are essentially the cost of flood damage. This, along with the realistic cost of the suggested solution, must be adequately translated into monetary terms, considering the present and future values comparable to these estimations to give an equal basis for comparison analysis. The core idea of cost benefit analysis (CBA) is that a project should raise social welfare, i.e., the project's societal benefits should outweigh the project's expenses. To summarize this section, despite its shortcomings, a cost-benefit analysis can nevertheless provide considerable rational information to decision-makers, and it is a well-established decision-making approach, but its usefulness and application are largely dependent on the availability of credible data in financial terms as well as the engagement of stakeholders. The Malaysian government should conduct a cost-benefit analysis to develop a Flood Mitigation Plan. The federal government must balance the divergent needs of various states with varying problems. Government Aid for Flood Victims Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob pledged a RM100 million budget to deal with the crisis, with RM1,000 going to each flood-affected home. Petronas, Celcom, Telekom Malaysia, Sime Darby, CIMB, UEM, and Khazanah Nasional are among the GLCs that will contribute RM50.8 million to the crisis. This effort, which involves more than RM39.5 million from the National Disaster Relief Trust Fund, is projected to help reduce the hardships of around 39,100 households. The government has also committed to deliver interest-free or non-profit financing of up to RM5,000 to flood-affected entrepreneurs, with payments beginning six months after the loan arrangement. Aside from that, the government agreed to provide flood-affected tenants of SME Bank's Entrepreneur Premises Complex a two-month rent waiver. These are all promising moves made by the government, but the fundamental question remains: would that be sufficient to mitigate the floods from happening every year or there is a need for more sophisticated plans to ensure what happened will never happen again. The Malaysian government appears to think that such an arrangement of cash giving is a viable way to improve public services. However, one potential approach is to make it mandatory for property developers to include flood prevention measures in the design and construction of buildings, particularly those near flood-prone zones. The most vulnerable to devastating flash floods are densely inhabited urbanized areas. Provision of previous ground surface to encourage infiltration, such as porous parking lots, swales, green areas, detention ponds, underground storage, rainwater harvesting, and so on, in addition to sufficient drainage design, plays a vital role in minimizing urban surface runoff. Conclusion And Recommendations Since Malaysians are often more exposed to flood risk in terms of frequency, area, and population affected, as well as the severe economic consequences of floods, critical flood decision-making must be backed up by a thorough cost-benefit analysis that considers all relevant factors and clearly represents the national and local scenario. I believe the government should have done a better job of reacting quickly to the floods. It frequently takes an event like this to shake things up, and we must ensure that we learn from the past and strive to be better prepared next time. Although it is tragic that many families have had to endure the long-term effects of these floods for us to change our ways, I believe there are promising indicators that Malaysia would be better prepared next time. Hence, there are several things I believe should be prioritized both before and after a flood: 1. Flood warning systems' accuracy and timeliness 2. Flood mapping reliability, coverage, accessibility, and taking advantage of local flood knowledge 3. Flood danger is considered while planning land use. 5. Command and control procedures for emergency services 6. Maintenance of important flood-control infrastructure 7. Post flood service delivery and outreach programs References: 1. Aid for flood, disaster victims raised to RM1,000 for each family. (2021, September 17). NADMA. Retrieved January 10, 2022, from https://www.nadma.gov.my/en/media-2/news/254-aid-for-flood-disaster-victims-raised-to-rm1-000-foreach-family 2. Aiman, A. (2021, December 24). Flood losses 'could amount to RM20 billion' | Free Malaysia Today. FMT. Retrieved January 10, 2022, from https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2021/12/24/flood-losses-could-amount-torm20-billion/ 3. Hassan, H. (2021, December 19). Peninsular Malaysia hit by '1-in-100-year' rainfall, govt says amid severe flooding. The Straits Times. Retrieved January 10, 2022, from https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/malaysia-pm-ismailmobilises-armed-forces-to-assist-with-flooding-more-rains-expected 4. Lee, W.-K., & Mohamad, I. N. (2013). Flood Economy Appraisal: An Overview of the Malaysian Scenario. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/263544470_Flood_Economy_Appraisal_An_Overview_of_the_Malaysian_Scenario#fullTe xtFileContent
