Disability Inclusion in Disaster Risk Reduction (DiDRR)

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With the support of

“ We know from many tragedies that without careful
planning and foresight, disability can be determinant
“
factor between life and death in a disaster situation

Mami Mizutori
Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction
and Head of UNDRR
Disasters undermine the lives of those most at risk

Given no warning to evacuate, 12 people with disabilities

drowned when flash floods hit their residential home in
the German town of Sinzig in July 2021.

An assessment post-Albania earthquake in 2019 found

that collective accommodation, including tents and
hotels, were exposing people with disabilities to new
risks as they were not equipped to meet their needs.
Raul Mellado Ortiz/Shutterstock
Source: Louisa Yasukawa (2021), When disasters strike, people with disabilities must not
be left behind

Persons with disabilities are often disproportionally affected by disasters

and have different and uneven levels of resilience and capacity to recover.

© UNDRR – United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction

Persons with disabilities are massive and diverse

16% of the world's population (1.3 billion people)

are living with disabilities – as of 2021

1/5 are women 1/10 are children

46% of people over 60 live with a disability

© UNDRR – United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction

Source: WHO, 2022. Global Report on Health Equity for Persons with Disabilities
What is disability?

UNABLE? DISABLE?

PHYSICAL
BROKEN?
IMPAIRMENT?

© UNDRR – United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction

© UNDRR – United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction
Disability is a concept

Disability is an evolving concept resulting from the

interaction between persons with impairments and
an environment filled with barriers that prevent their
full and effective participation in society on an equal
basis with others.

© UNDRR – United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction

 Disability concept

Environmental
Impairment
barriers

• Seeing • Physical - inaccessible

• Hearing facilities and infrastructure
• Mobility • Programmatic -
• Concentrating unsupported policy
• Communicating ‘Disability’ • Attitudinal - stigma
Unable or obstructed
to fully participate in
community activities
© UNDRR – United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction
Challenges faced by persons with disabilities in risk management

Analysis Phase – not part of the planning process, no

disaggregated data on persons with disabilities in risk
information
Preparedness & Response Phases
• Information and communication systems are
inadequate and not accessible → Excluded from the
warning and alarm systems, emergency plans and
capacity development processes
• The specific needs of persons with disabilities are not
considered in the evacuation processes → Temporary
shelters often lack the basic conditions for accessibility
Recovery phase – excluded from decision making and
their specific needs are ignored

Source: Latin American and Caribbean Disability Inclusive Disaster Risk Management Network (LAC DiDRM Network)
Disability Inclusion in Disaster Risk Reduction

© UNDRR – United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction

Sendai Framework
A global guidance for member states and their
stakeholders in implementing actions aimed at
reducing disaster risk, through the four priorities:

2
1
Strengthening disaster
Understanding
risk governance to
disaster risk
manage disaster risk

4
3 Enhancing disaster
preparedness for effective
Investing in disaster
response and to ‘Build
risk reduction for Back Better’ in recovery,
resilience rehabilitation and
reconstruction
Guiding Principle D

Disaster risk reduction requires an all-of-society engagement and

partnership. It also requires empowerment and inclusive, accessible and
non-discriminatory participation , paying special attention to people
disproportionately affected by disasters, especially the poorest.

A gender, age, disability and cultural perspective should be integrated in

all policies and practices , and women and youth leadership should be
promoted. In this context, special attention should be paid to the
improvement of organized voluntary work of citizens.

© UNDRR – United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction

Persons with disabilities as DRR stakeholders

Article (a)(iii) on Role of Stakeholders:

Persons with disabilities and their organizations are critical in

the assessment of disaster risk and in designing and
implementing plans tailored to specific requirements, taking into
consideration, inter alia, the principles of universal design.

© UNDRR – United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction

Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)

Article 4.3 calls on States

▪ The CRPD is an international human
to closely consult
rights treaty of the United Nations with and actively involve persons
intended to protect the rights and with disabilities through their
representative organizations.
dignity of persons with disabilities,
adopted in 2006. Article 11 calls on States to take
all necessary measures to ensure
the protection and safety of
▪ The CRPD calls for the inclusion and persons with disabilities in
situations of risk, including
full participation of persons with situations of armed conflict,
disabilities in all aspects of life. humanitarian emergencies and
the occurrence of natural
disasters.

© UNDRR – United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction

Organizations of persons with disabilities (OPDs)

▪ OPDs are non-governmental organizations that are

led, directed and governed by persons with
disabilities. Persons with disabilities also compose
a clear majority of the OPD membership.

▪ OPDs advocate for the rights and interests of their

members and play a critical role in representing the
viewpoints of persons with disabilities. ‘Nothing about us without us’

▪ Persons with disabilities and OPDs are best placed Consultation and participation
to know what is needed to be fully included and the are keys supporting this motto.
best courses of action to achieve it.

© UNDRR – United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction Source: UN Disability Inclusion Strategy – Putting Words into Action online training course.
UNDRR Global survey on persons with disabilities and disaster

▪ Two surveys were conducted in 2013 and 2023 to

understand the progress made in disability inclusion
in DRR
- 2013: 5,717 responses from 137 countries.
- 2023: 6,342 responses from 132 countries.

Mukesh Kumar Jwala/Shutterstock ▪ The results show limited progress in disability

inclusion over the past 10 years, with no significant
differences across the regions.

© UNDRR – United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction

Key findings from persons with disabilities - 1

84% 56% 23%

Not having a personal Not being aware of or Face a lot of difficulties

preparedness plan for not having access to evacuating or not able
disasters. This was less disaster risk to evacuate
than in the 2013 survey. information in independently at all.
accessible formats.

© UNDRR – United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction

Key findings from persons with disabilities - 2

14% 8% 86% 57%

Reported being Reported that local Reported no Indicated the

aware of DRR plans participation in willingness to
subnational DRR addressed the community DRR participate.
plans (11% for specific needs of decision-making
national DRR plans). persons with and planning.
disabilities

© UNDRR – United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction

Key recommendations - 1

• Persons with disabilities should be included in all policymaking and

implementation for disaster resilience, compliance with international law
(UNCRPD) and/or national disability laws.

• Ensure equity between persons with and without disabilities in all measures
to reduce and prevent disaster risk.

• Ensure diversity in representation and decision-making, including by

impairment type – recognize the different needs of persons with disabilities.

© UNDRR – United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction

Key recommendations - 2

• Prioritize disability inclusion as a key policy concern and objective for DRR –
build internal institutional capacities and expertise on disability inclusion and
foster diversity in leadership and build partnerships with Organization of
Persons with Disabilities (OPDs) and external organizations and experts.

• Support applied and action-oriented research and learning to identify actions

that can reduce disaster risk for persons with disabilities and with complex
support needs.

© UNDRR – United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction

Inclusion in Disaster Risk Management

“To speak of inclusion in Disaster Risk Management is

to move from a welfare perspective to processes,
where people with disabilities are seen as objects of
protection and rescue to a totally inclusive one, where
people with disabilities are part of the generation of
policies, plans and procedures, from consultative,
operational and managerial spaces.”

- Juan Ángel De Gouveia, President, Latin American Network of

Organizations of Persons with Disabilities and their Families
(RIADIS), 2023

© UNDRR – United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction

References
• Louisa Yasukawa (2021). When disasters strike, people with disabilities must not be left behind
• UNDRR. Disability Inclusion in Disaster Risk Reduction
• UNDRR (2013). UN2013 Global survey explains why so many people living with disabilities dies in
disasters
• UNDRR (2022). Persons with disabilities in situations of risks: a scoping study on Article 11 of the
Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
• UNDRR (2023). Global survey on persons with disabilities and disaster
• United Nations. United Nations Disabilities Inclusion Strategy
• United Nations System Staff College. United Nations Disability Inclusion Strategy – Putting Words Into
Action
• WHO (2022). Global Report on Health Equity for Persons with Disabilities

© UNDRR – United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction

 Thank You

© UNDRR – United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction

With the support of