Drawing on over 40 key informant interviews, the recently released reports adopt a development approach to disaster responses. Thee research drew on principles of area-based approaches (ABAs) including people-centred and local-based approaches, multi-sectorial collaboration, flexible programming and reflective learning. This article, by report co-author David Sanderson, is a great explainer of using ABAs in post-disaster contexts.
One key finding of the reports is that effective governance and co-ordination structures are critical to ABAs’ effectiveness. Each PIC examined (Fiji, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu) demonstrated different strengths. The Solomon Islands demonstrated strengths in the creation of National Disaster Management Plan (NDMP) and strong coordination by the National Disaster Management Office (NDMO) along with evidence of past learnings informing current practice. Fiji has demonstrated a prioritisation of disaster responses with significant improvement and investment in disaster management occurring following Tropical Cyclone (TC) Winston. In Vanuatu, disaster management systems were found to be relatively effective nationally, and is working to strengthen multiagency and multisectory responses.
The research lists several key takeaways for utilising ABAs for disaster responses in the Pacific. These included realistic and flexible timeframes, strong accountability, establishing protocols and standards for community interventions and ensuring reflective practices and ‘lessons learned’ are locally accessible. You can read a full list of the key takeaways on page 6 of the synthesis report at the link below.
The Resilience project was a partnership to consider how Pacific Island countries are dealing with the pressures of increasingly frequent disasters. It is intended as a conversation opener so the team would be interested to hear from you or your organisation about innovative ways we could work together. Links to the full reports are available below.
Pacific Resilience – Regional Synthesis