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Estimated that every $1 spent on making communities more resilient can save as much as $4 in disaster relief in the future
The Institution of Mechanical Engineers is calling on Governments around the world to focus more humanitarian aid on building resilience in the world’s disaster hotspots. This is one of the key recommendations in the new report ‘Natural disasters: saving lives today, building resilience for tomorrow’.
Dr Tim Fox, Head of Energy and Environment at the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, and lead author of the report, said:
“Just 4% of all international aid is currently channelled into helping to build resilience in disaster hotspots, which is well below the UN’s recommendation of 10%.
“While the UK Government has pledged to increase the level of funding it provides to build resilience in these communities, international funding in this area still falls well short of what is needed.
“Investing in resilience provides good value for money and it is estimated that every $1 spent on making communities more resilient can save as much as $4 in disaster relief in the future. More importantly, developing resilience in these regions and communities can also save lives and communities.
“Chile, for example, educates communities about earthquake safety and enforces strict building codes. When a huge 8.8 magnitude earthquake struck in February 2010, Chile was better prepared – and although over 500 people died – this falls far short of the over 200,000 people who died in the smaller, 7.0 magnitude, Haiti earthquake which struck in January 2010.
“Expensive engineering and architecture isn’t the only solution – significant benefits could be achieved just by ensuring engineers are available to help locate temporary infrastructure such as camps and supplies of water, sanitation and energy, as well as transfer knowledge about resilience to local populations.”
As part of the report, the Institution of Mechanical Engineers has made three key recommendations that could help the world become more resilient to the effects of natural events like earthquakes, floods and storms:
- To focus more international development funding on building future resilience. Currently only 4% of all international humanitarian aid relief is channelled to helping build resilience in disaster hotspots, well below the UN’s recommended 10%. As it is estimated that every $1 spent on making communities more resilient can save as much as $4 in disaster relief in the future, by spending now, donor nations such as the UK could maximise their development aid. Doing so would provide better living for residents, ensure more effective use of UK taxpayers’ money and help ensure a more secure future for all.
- Build local capacity through knowledge transfer. Governments, the private sector and all those with a stake in global supply chains need to prioritise the transfer of knowledge, information and skills for the building of local resilience capacity. Technical knowledge for embedding resilience thinking, improved building standards and codes, engineering practice know-how and appropriate relevant training builds local expertise and indigenous capability. To facilitate international knowledge transfer partnerships, the Hyogo Framework priority for action to reduce the underlying risk factors must be reinvigorated by the UN, and DFID and its international counterparts should create long-term engineering placements (three or more years) that enable effective transfer of relevant skills and know-how. By helping to ensure nations are able to cope more effectively with extreme natural events, the prospects for the future stability and continuity of worldwide supply chains are improved.
- Embed the long-term engineering view in the short-term response. NGOs, national governments, the UN and others involved in co-ordinating the short-term response to natural disasters should seek the early involvement of engineers in their activities. Decisions made in the immediate recovery stage of a response set the engineering foundations and constraints for eventual reconstruction and redevelopment. The quicker engineers can begin infrastructure assessment and longer-term reconstruction planning, the better short-term decision-making will be and the more likely a successful overall outcome that increases a community’s resilience.
To read the full report: ‘Natural disasters: saving lives today, building resilience for tomorrow’.