Fiji: Learning from communities in the development of national planned relocation guidelines in the context of climate change
Following a multi-year process initiated by the Government in 2012, Fiji launched its national “Planned Relocation Guidelines: A framework to undertake climate change related relocation” (the “Planned Relocation Guidelines”) at the UN Climate Change Conference in Katowice (COP24) in December 2018.3 These guidelines, the first of their kind, outline principles and social safeguards to guide government assistance to Fijian communities who, as a measure of last resort, may need to relocate to new sites. The example below explores how the Government engaged affected communities in the development of the Planned Relocation Guidelines.
Indonesia: The Sister Village Program for disaster preparedness
Javanese villages with kinship ties traditionally cooperate and support one another, particularly in times of crisis or disaster. The sister village system enhances this practice by systematizing cooperation between villages in high-risk areas with those located in safe “buffer” zones. Villages facing a risk of disaster displacement initiate their participation in the programme, with government authorities then facilitating the process of matching them with other villages that could potentially receive displaced people.
Mongolia: Forecast-based financing to avoid disaster displacement
Despite significant efforts to build herders’ resilience to dzuds, many vulnerable families face a real risk of livestock loss that could contribute to subsequent poverty and potential displacement to urban slums. Recognizing the predictable nature of dzuds, the Government of Mongolia has partnered with Mongolian Red Cross Society, supported by the British Red Cross and the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre (RCCC), to use Forecast-based Financing (FbF) to reduce livestock loss by releasing humanitarian funds before extreme winter weather conditions arrive.
Nepal: Building expertise on disability-inclusive design in disaster preparedness, response and recovery efforts
In 2016-2017, the National Federation of the Disabled Nepal (NFDN) trained 17 leaders of Organizations of People with Disabilities (OPDs) on emergency shelter and settlement standards to ensure that all phases of disaster management, from preparedness to “building back better,” were disability- inclusive. The project was implemented in collaboration with government agencies, other OPDs and partners, including Christian Blind Mission (CBM) International.
The OPD leaders then trained 270 stakeholders from eight earthquake-affected districts, including other OPD members, district and municipal officials, members of local disaster management committees, representatives from the police, army and media, as well as humanitarian actors. The trainees subsequently formed a Resource Pool that continues to work together as a community of practice in the Kathmandu valley, promoting accessibility standards based on the Principles of Universal Design.
Philippines: Community participation in evacuation planning in Metropolitan Manila
Between August 2017 and June 2018, three of metropolitan Manila’s most vulnerable cities (Navotas, Pateros and Quezon) partnered with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) on a pilot project to strengthen community-based preparedness in the event of a major earthquake, locally referred to as “the Big One.” Ultimately engaging hundreds of local residents, the project focused on mass evacuation and camp management in vulnerable urban barangays (sub-districts or the smallest administrative division in the Philippines) facing significant earthquake and flood hazards. The European Commission’s Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO) funded the project.
Vanuatu: Climate change and disaster-induced displacement policy
Following through on these recommendations, in 2018, the Government of Vanuatu finalized the National Climate Change and Disaster-Induced Displacement Policy (“Displacement Policy”) through a broad, consultative process that included contributions from displacement-affected communities. The Displacement Policy is notable for its comprehensive, inter- ministerial approach to addressing all stages of the response to climate change and disaster-induced displacement, from seeking to prevent the underlying causes of displacement to the final stage of ensuring displaced people and host communities’ long-term recovery needs are met through national development planning. Thus, it mainstreams displacement and human mobility considerations into relevant government action at all levels.