Gender Integration into Disaster Prevention and Management

Gender Integration into Disaster Prevention and Management October 19, 2007 Rie Kawahara JICA Expert Team The Project on Capacity Development in Disaster Management

Question 1: Is Disaster Prevention & Management men’s jobs and responsibilities? Why is gender perspective necessary? Question 2: Who are the affecting groups when Disaster happening?

Question 4:Measures to meet the needs of vulnerable people to Disaster in Prevention & Management Question 3: Optimizing missions of DDPM through Gender Integration

Question1:Is Disaster Prevention and Management men’s jobs and responsibilities? Why is gender perspective necessary?

Gender Perspectives (=gender glasses/lens) →Attention on gender differences in what men & women do in social (cultural) relations such as roles and identities This approach does not look at women and men alone, but at “the relationship” between them, how societies are structured along gender lines and the impact of these relations in the whole society

Glasses of “Gendered Relationships” reflecting into Planning, Implementation & Monitoring and Evaluation Look at and analyze - the gendered relationships in economic, political and social terrain - unequal power relationships, and access to resources & information?

Gender (perspective) mainstreaming in Project Cycle Management Project Cycle Management (PCM)

Is Disaster Prevention & Management men’s jobs and responsibilities? This is not true, because women are major players for disaster prevention and management in particular at community levels: - Women as players of economic activities, household managers and child care takers

Neglecting women’s needs and constraints in social roles →limit optimization of the effects in measures of disaster management & prevention

Question 2: • Who are the affecting groups when Disaster happening? • Women’s victims are more than those of • Men • Example: High Tide at Bangladesh (1991): • Women’s death was 4- 5 times more than • that of men

In case of Ache, Indonesia (2005)Comparison of death between female & male: “70-80%female : 20-30% Male”

In case of high tide of Bangladesh (1991)Comparison of death between female & male: female from 20s to 40s: 4-5 times of male

In case of heavy rain in Nagasaki, Japan (1983)Comparison of death between female & male in the collapsed houses: female death 150% of male death

Why women become more victimized? In case of Bangladesh: • Decision Making: women tend to - Not familiar with immediate judgment - Without husbands, it is not allowed to escape by themselves • Traditional Gender Roles: - Protect children and properties first

Relations between women’s vulnerability and disasters: Women tend to get negative effects by disaster than those of men - Access to resources and controls - Social organizations and norms - Development measures and policies - Weakened individuals and local communities

Access to resources and information: - Less knowledge on evacuation facilities and routes - limited access to Information (delivery) and its understanding - Nutrition status, health status • Social/traditional norms (rules) - Wearing sallies (long dress), long hairs, cannot swim well

Social status and human rights: - Less security and limited social entitlement at evacuation facilities - Land and property rights tend to be registered under men’s names - Traditional and cultural law/ practices against civil Laws

Question 3: Optimizing missions of DDPM through Gender Integration <Missions of DDPM> • Implementing disaster prevention • Directing disaster prevention activities • Procurement of materials & equipment needed • Rehabilitation of damages • Mainstreaming and coordination of collaboration on disaster management

Is gender perspective, in particular to the target population as DDPM’s mandates and expected services and “Vulnerable people” or socially disadvantaged looked at into the plans, measures and activities?

Question 4:Measures to meet the needs of vulnerable people to Disaster in Prevention & Management

Collection and anaysis of Gender disaggregated information • Based on the gender disaggregated data, make policies and plans • Gender issues to be integrated with other developmement agenda • Promote more women’s participation in formulating prevention plans and carrying out activities→indicators for M&E

After hit of disasters 1 Women’s specific needs to be priotized: • Pregnant women, Breast feeding, Period • Women’s diseases (gynecology) • Toilet • Privacy • Elders’ care

Women’ human rights are not protected (=violated) • Increase of rapes, domestic violence, human trafficking to women

Prevention Cycles and Gender1) Prevention • Understanding of differences of risk to Hazard - Gender differentiation of risks - Gender differentiation of knowledge and capabilities to prevention of hazard • Organization of Prevention Structure - few women: difficult for women to participate • Warning and Evacuation System - include women more in the process of information delivery=securing women’s access to information for evacuation

Prevention Cycles and Gender 2) Emergency rescue • Emergency rescue - Consider and prepare for women’s particular needs • Life saving - Women’s death tends to be higher (pre-measure) • Support to victims - Increase of women’s domestic burdens and to get violence at homes

Prevention Cycles and Gender3) Recovery and Reconstruction • Special support to victims’ re-construction of life: - Women’s livelihood, re-employment tend to be slower than those of men - Delay of support to women headed family - Girls’ increase of dropout from schools

Good Luck!

Gender Integration into Disaster Prevention and Management