Department of Sustainable Development

Programmatic Approach

The activities undertaken at the three levels of intervention are guided by the following principles: (i) reducing vulnerability; (ii) preventing and preparing for; (iii) creating conditions for timely and effective humanitarian assistance; (iv) fostering accountability and effective use of recovery and reconstruction assistance, by creating jobs and specialized labor and technical capacity; (v) fostering community-based risk management, and people-centered EWS; and (vi) fostering public-private partnerships for risk transfer.

While the DSD-NHRRP supports the efforts of local, national and international communities to provide humanitarian assistance, relief, and recovery and reconstruction before a natural disaster emergency; efforts are geared towards reducing vulnerability to natural hazards, and preventing and preparing for natural disaster.

Furthermore, the DSD-NHRRP is committed to support the review of legal and institutional frameworks for creating enabling conditions for humanitarian assistance, lifting barriers to the deployment of humanitarian assistance teams, and the distribution of food, medicine and goods. Focus is also centered in community-based EWS and increasing local community resilience, by establishing a specialized labor force for natural hazard-resilient housing, school and health physical infrastructure –as a means to raise awareness and self-assess risk, create job and income opportunities, and reduce inequities. Finally, public-private partnerships are fostered and encouraged in order to better integrate risk transfer mechanisms on sector-needed basis.

In addition to these guiding principles, the DSD-NHRRP is built on thematic specific-issues needs, specific to geo-political units, such as the SIDS, the Central American Isthmus, and the Andean Community. Transboudary basin approaches are also used as to address hydro-meteorological phenomena within hydrological regimes, and ecosystem functioning. The DSD-NHRRP strives to build a knowledge base that includes scientific and technical information, socio-economic information, and experience and lessons learned which can be translated into “good” practices. Finally, cooperation, collaboration and synergies among all stakeholders is essential for the success of the Program.

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