The World Bank’s Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR), the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and the European Union (EU) are working on a guide for developing disaster recovery frameworks (DRF). This guide aims to help governments and partners plan for resilient post disaster recovery while contributing to longer term sustainable development. It is based on practices gleaned from country experiences in disaster recovery around the world. Hence, the development of the DRF Guide entailed the development of country-level case studies as well as thematic case studies on disaster recovery.
These case studies have been designed to collect and analyze information on: i) disaster recovery standards and principles adapted by countries for specific disasters; ii) planning efforts for making such recovery efficient, equitable and resilient; iii) policies, institutions and capacities to implement and monitor disaster recovery; and iv) ways and means for translating the gains of resilient recovery into longer-term risk reduction and resilient development.
The methodology for developing the case studies consisted of five steps:
1. Desk review of available documentation and literature regarding the specific disaster and recovery.
2. Field visit to complete and validate findings from the first step, including a workshop with govern- ment officials and other partners who have been involved in the recovery process; and in-depth interviews with key partners in central and local government, international organizations (multilateral and non-governmental), and civil society.
3. Preparation of the study to be part of the GFDRR country case study series.
4. Review of document by the aforementioned partner organizations, their country offices, peers and partner agencies.
5. Validation of final case study document through an in-country workshop.
Importantly, these case studies aim to learn from, and not evaluate, country reconstruction initiatives. Practices learned from each country’s experience would inform the contents of the guide for developing a DRF. Additionally, the case studies examine the planning processes and not the implementation details of recovery experiences. As such, they do not seek to offer a comprehensive account of the post-disaster recovery program, but instead provide details and insight into the decision-making processes for reconstruction policies and programs.
Following the earthquake of January 2010, the Government of Haiti appealed to the international community for support in assessing total damage and loss, as well as in post disaster reconstruction and recovery. The case study of Haiti focuses on the policies and practices of recovery from that time until the present. This document summarizes only the key findings from the case study. The complete document will be published following the validation workshop with the Government of Haiti, scheduled for October 2014.