Pakistan Floods: Preventing Future Catastrophic Flood Disasters

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You can contact the author, Marcus Oxley, directly at marcus.oxley(at)globalnetwork-dr.org

The Executive Summary of the article appears below

Executive Summary

In January 2005 one hundred and sixty eight nations adopted the Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA) 2005-2015 to bring about a “substantial reduction in disaster losses” by 2015. Despite this global initiative a series of major disasters, including the recent flooding in Pakistan, all indicate that we are not on track to achieve the substantial reduction of disaster losses. The following report considers what can be done to accelerate progress towards implementation of the Hyogo Framework, drawing on insights and lessons learnt from the August flooding to understand how Pakistan and neighbouring countries can prevent a repeat of such catastrophic disasters in future years.

Unusually heavy monsoon rains in northern Pakistan in late July – August 2010 caused disproportionate levels of extreme flooding throughout the Indus River basin leading to unprecendented  losses. Extensive land use changes and environmental degradation in the upland and lowlands of the river basin, together with the construction of a “built environment” out of balance with the functioning, capacities and limits of the local ecosystems have combined to expose millions of people to increased risk of extreme flooding during times of heavy rains. The dynamic relationship between people, the natural and built enviornment is influenced by social, political and economic systems, which in turn are mediated and regulated through “governance” processes. Good governance in the form of a capable, accountable and responsive government working together with civil society and at-risk communities is the single most important factor in determining progress in preventing future disasters.

With the benefit of hindsight, the severity of the August flooding has served to highlight mutual dependencies and expose deficiences in government development policies and practices not readily apparent during “normal” times.  By applying these insights through the adoption of a risk management approach the post-disaster recovery process offers a unique opportunity to  change fundamentally Pakistan’s current socio-economic development path.  This involves harmonising action on disaster risk reduction, climate change (mitigation and adaptation) and livelihood resilience in recognition that social, economic and ecological systems are intrinsically interdependent. This will need a high degree of collaboration between different (and sometimes conflicting) interest groups at local, national, regional and international levels. It will require the development of a comprehensive Indus River basin management strategy that takes local context as the starting point, strengthens the capabilities of local people, connects indigenous and “scientific” knowledge, and importantly, builds a sense of ownership, trust and mutuality between state and non-state actors to forge effective partnerships.