How to include and empower
the vulnerable
in disaster risk reduction
Hugh MacLeman, Special Advisor, British Red Cross
ODI, 25 November 2014
Links between
poverty and
disaster risk
> Up to 325 million extremely poor people living in
the 49 most hazard exposed countries by 2030
> Poverty reduction as a component of risk
reduction
 Vulnerability and exposure to hazards
 Poverty as a driver of disaster risk
> Disaster risk reduction as a component of
poverty reduction
 Disaster resilience and poverty
Poverty and
disasters in
post-2015
processes
> Post-2015 framework for DRR
 Focus on vulnerable countries but not on people living in
poverty
 Moving from resilience to risk prevention and risk
reduction may have a more positive impact for the poor
> World Humanitarian Summit
 Recognises the increasing number of poor people in
hazard prone environments and differentiates urban and
rural poor
> Post-MDGs / Social Development Goals
 Considers a broader set of hazards with a more
nuanced understanding of poverty
Poverty and
disasters:
Gaps and
opportunities
> Context-specific and differentiated understanding of
both disasters and poverty
> Increased understanding of the interaction between
disaster risk reduction and poverty reduction
strategies
> Recognising both the opportunities and the
limitations of people’s engagement in decision
making processes
> Strengthening coherence with both the proposed
sustainable development goals and the World
Humanitarian Summit dialogue