Our Lessons: disability-inclusive disaster risk reduction report

An approach to disability-inclusive disaster risk reduction based on consultations with people with disabilities in the Asia and Pacific regions.

The Asia-Pacific region has the world’s highest rate of natural hazard events. One in six people have a disability. Communities need to be prepared for disasters yet people with disabilities across these regions continue to be systematically excluded from disaster preparedness activities, placing them at greater risk.

To help disability-inclusive disaster risk reduction become a reality, the Pacific Disability Forum (PDF), the International Disability Alliance (IDA), and CBM Global’s Inclusion Advisory Group, worked together on inclusive consultations across Asia and the Pacific, seeking the perspectives, experiences and priorities of a diverse range of people with disabilities in relation to disaster preparedness, response and recovery.

A total of 506 people from Asia and the Pacific completed an online survey, sharing their experiences of disability and disasters. An additional 80 people participated in virtual focus group discussions and key informant interviews in the South and East Asia regions. 274 people participated in face-to-face focus group discussions and key informant interviews in five Pacific Island Countries.

This report draws on these consultations and highlights the stories and experiences of people with disabilities from Asia and the Pacific in recent disasters, including COVID-19. The report also delivers findings and recommendations from the sub-regions to inform governments, the development and humanitarian sectors, and other actors involved in disaster policy, mitigation, and response.

This publication was made possible through funding received from the Australian Government through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.