Regional Level Capacity Building for Professionals on Implementation of SFDRR at Local Level - Assam, India

Background

Large scale natural disasters often overwhelm the capacity of governments, not only for effective response but for long term recovery and reconstruction as well. Recent experiences such as the cloud burst and landslide in Uttarakhand, India, the Great East Japan Earthquake of March 11, 2011, the Haiti Earthquake of January 12, 2010, and the flood in Pakistan clearly illustrates the need for surge capacity and ex-ante planning in disaster response and recovery. The gap could be well addressed through further strengthening in understanding and implementing the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk reduction (SFDRR) and the role of the state. Such a mechanism can contribute to reinforcing regional integration, sharing of experiences and transfer of expertise, setting and promoting best practices. The current approach is to create a cadre of master trainers at the state level, who would again train the professionals at the regional and state level representing states and districts of the North-East region.

Assam state, India

Assam state is prone to multi-hazards and vulnerable to climate variability and its negative manifestations such as flood, earthquake, storms and cyclone, soil erosion, extreme weather events, flash floods and landslides besides risks of human-induced disasters. The state falls in a high-intensity seismic zone-V and has a history of high magnitude earthquakes. Floods are a major challenge. The state faces recurring floods each year affecting land, life and livelihood. The hazard maps prepared by the National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC) reveal that there are areas in the state where floods recur 5 to 7 times in a year.

The average annual damage since 1954 has been over Rs 124 crore, estimated average annual erosion rate has been 8,000 hectares, which has affected lakhs of families spread over 2,534 villages. Floods and erosions cause major disruption in education and health services. Studies have shown that children tend to lose, on an average, about a month and a half of school days. Because many of the schools are used as relief camps, they remain closed for months. Even after the floods, schools have to remain closed as physical infrastructure gets damaged. Besides challenges related to water and sanitation together with post-flood episodes of diseases, children and women face issues related to safety and security, and become most vulnerable to all kinds of harassment.

Objective and Expected Outcome

The training is aimed at enhancing the capacity of trainees on implementation of SFDRR, so that the trained personnel will be available for providing technical expertise as needed. The main result areas of the training are;

1. to increase understanding on SFDRR and the role of the state
2. to increase the understanding level for preparing a resilience action plan based on the gaps identified using the Sendai Framework
3. to take stock of state disaster risk reduction related policy, plans and strategy
4. to form a group of professionals in the state represented by GO/NGO/INGO, trained on the implementation of SFDRR as advocates for the “build back better” campaign.