Attachments
1. What is urban risk management? Why is it important for Nepal?
In my understanding, urban risk management is a multi-sectoral effort for reducing risks associated in cities and towns. This means assessing exposure to hazards and reducing vulnerability of urban populations due to poor governance, environmental degradation and overstretching of resources. The overall aim of urban risk management is to strengthen resilience of urban communities.
This is an important issue for Nepal because many urban areas are at high risk of various disasters; Nepal is the 11th most vulnerable country to earthquakes and 30th most vulnerable to water induced disasters. Nepal is the fastest urbanising country in the world. Much of this urbanisation is unplanned resulting in increased vulnerability in urban areas.
The Kathmandu Valley, which is the economic and political hub for Nepal, is the most vulnerable city in the world to earthquakes. From my experience, the risk in these urban areas is increasing due to high population density, unplanned development practices, unsafe construction, lack of urban planning, poverty, and high inequality in terms of access to public services. In addition, the lack of disaster preparedness initiatives and limited awareness amongst public officials and community members has created a high risk urban environment. Reducing this risk is a critical component of strengthening overall disaster preparedness and resilience in Nepal.
We have seen some important steps in strengthening disaster risk reduction, such as establishing the emergency operating centre network or identification of open spaces for emergency response in Kathmandu Valley. However, there are still not enough agencies implementing disaster risk reduction projects in urban settings. There has also been less attention paid towards protecting urban populations or the political-economic value of Kathmandu Valley from all stakeholders. It is urgent that government, donor agencies, humanitarian and development actors and civil society take the appropriate actions to protect its citizens, economy, environment and culture from the risk of disaster. This is the only way we can ensure sustainable development.