Section ROOTS 9 REDUCING RISK OF DISASTER IN OUR COMMUNITIES

3 Introduction to Participatory
Assessment of Disaster Risk
This section looks at how the Crunch and Release models can be transformed into a
practical tool called Participatory Assessment of Disaster Risk (PADR). Components of
the model (hazards, elements at risk, vulnerable conditions, pressures and underlying
causes) form stages in the Assessment process.

The key steps are:

preparation
hazard assessment
vulnerability assessment
capacity assessment
key informant interviews
action planning.

Using this approach, disaster risk can be fully assessed by local people and effectively
reduced through a range of activities. The key steps of PADR are outlined in Section 4.
In this section, we consider two important issues which are essential to the PADR
process:
good facilitation
understanding the categories of analysis, which form the basis of the vulnerability and
capacity assessments.

3.1 Good facilitation

PADR requires good facilitation if it is to be owned by local people. This involves:
identifying who should facilitate
considering facilitation issues
thinking about facilitation skills.

The facilitation The purpose of the facilitation team is to enable local people to carry out the Assessment.
team The team needs a minimum of three people:
a facilitator who can lead the discussions
someone who can make accurate notes of the discussions and plans
someone who can make practical arrangements.

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It can be helpful to have more than one facilitator so that different focus groups can meet
at the same time. If the facilitators are members of staff of a development organisation, a
translator may be needed.

The facilitation team should include both men and women. It is particularly important
to have a female facilitator for meetings with womens groups to encourage open and
honest discussion of issues.

The local church can serve local people in a practical way by engaging with this process.
Where appropriate, church members who could be facilitators should join the facilitation
team.

The facilitation team should have a maximum of six members. It is beneficial for some
facilitators to be from the local area as it will help the community to engage with the
process better. It will also help to address expectations which can be particularly high if
too many outsiders are involved. Local people have a lot to contribute to the facilitation
team they will know which methods will work and which will not work.

Any local people who join the facilitation team should be willing to remain neutral
during focus group discussions. Potential local facilitators may have already shown their
ability to facilitate discussion. Other people may have the potential to become good
facilitators, and could be trained during the PADR process. These people should be
included in the facilitation team from the start. However, they may initially want to
watch others facilitate the focus group exercises before doing it themselves. It is
important that experienced facilitators give these new facilitators constructive feedback.

The note-maker will need to be literate. It is usually best to have a local person making
the practical arrangements. They have local knowledge which can be helpful when
deciding where and when to hold the focus group meetings.

Facilitation issues

The facilitators should take time to read this whole book through at least once, in order
to fully understand the theory and the process of carrying out the Assessment.

It is important to be aware of two key issues which affect the success of the process:
relief dependency
managing sensitive issues.

Relief Where a high level of relief aid has been distributed after a disaster, relief dependency
dependency may develop. This occurs if relief aid is excessive or is provided without recognising
peoples own coping capacities. Humanitarian agencies can treat beneficiaries as helpless
victims and allow them little participation in decision-making, rather than treating them
as survivors with strengths and abilities.

When people have become used to getting help from outsiders, they may exaggerate the
scale of their vulnerabilities and minimise their capacities in order to get maximum
support and resources. Information received from people that seems surprising could

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therefore be checked by asking other local people or organisations working in the area.
Findings can be compared and verified. The facilitator will need to be wise in the
handling of the Assessment process. The facilitator should strengthen peoples desire to
develop without becoming reliant on outside help.

Managing Exposing and exploring peoples vulnerabilities is a sensitive matter. If there is not enough
sensitive issues emphasis upon capacities, the PADR process can focus too heavily upon weaknesses. This
can be dis-empowering and cause pain by bringing to mind past traumatic events.
Discussions about the underlying causes of peoples vulnerability can be very sensitive if
they refer to specific people in positions of power and to traditional belief systems.

If not facilitated well, PADR can cause either one of the following reactions:
a fatalistic attitude where poor and marginalised people start to believe their
vulnerability has to be permanent. A Christian facilitator can share a different
perspective that poor and marginalised people are valuable to God, and all have
abilities and potential. This creates hope for the future.
increased tension between those who are vulnerable and people who are identified as
creating or ignoring their vulnerability. The facilitator could help the group to think
of situations where these people are or have been helpful and to consider what
influences the good or bad decisions they make.

Facilitation skills

The aim of the PADR process is to increase peoples understanding of their vulnerabilities
and capacities, so that they can develop positive approaches to improve their situation.
Facilitators should avoid the temptation to extract information from local people and
make decisions for them. Facilitators should instead focus on enabling them to reduce
their own disaster risk.

People can have very different perceptions of risk, depending on their gender, wealth,
age, education, type of employment and position in society. Facilitators should have an
open mind and avoid imposing their own views.

Key principles By following some key principles, local ownership of the PADR process can be
encouraged:
The purpose of PADR should be made clear to, and agreed with, local people.
The process should be carried out with respect and sensitivity.
The process of assessment is as important as the product or outcome. Invest time in
encouraging the process to be as participatory as possible.
Where possible, focus groups should be made up of people with similar
characteristics, such as age, sex, livelihood or ethnicity.
Energisers or ice-breakers at the start of focus group meetings can help people to feel
comfortable with the facilitators and with other people.

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Questions should be open-ended in order to encourage discussion. However, make

sure that discussions do not stray from their purpose.
Analysis of the information collected should be done with local people.
Literacy should not be assumed. Participatory Learning and Action tools enable
people who are not literate to participate in information gathering and analysis.
Sensitive issues should be dealt with carefully and appropriately.
The process may identify low-cost ways to reduce vulnerability. Communities can
be empowered if they are encouraged to start with these after the action planning
step.

When facilitating meetings with community members, the following ideas could be
helpful:

DO DONT

Allow time for introductions and explanations Teach

Show respect Rush

Watch, listen, learn and show interest Lecture

Be sensitive to feelings and culture Criticise

Be prepared, but flexible Interrupt

Be creative Dominate

Show humour Look bored

Be willing to allow community members to take Ignore cultural norms

the lead Laugh at peoples ideas

3.2 Categories of analysis

PADR uses five categories of analysis. The five categories relate to different types of
assets. An asset is something that can be used to improve well-being. These categories
recognise that hazards affect different aspects of life. By using these categories we can
ensure that all aspects of vulnerability and capacity are assessed. It means that the
facilitators preferences, or those of powerful people, do not dominate. For example, it
may be tempting for a facilitator who is experienced in social work to ignore
structural or physical strengths and weaknesses. Someone with an engineering
background may not pay adequate attention to indigenous skills or local knowledge.

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The facilitator may find it useful to start discussions with focus groups in the order given
here. However, while this order is logical and discussions can flow quite naturally from
one category to the next, the facilitator may need to be flexible and respond to the
direction of the groups discussions. This is partly because the categories are connected
with each other. The facilitator should be focused upon the overall aim of the process
to find ways of reducing disaster risk rather than necessarily following the exact
sequence of the process itself.

The five categories of analysis

ECONOMIC NATURAL CONSTRUCTED INDIVIDUAL SOCIAL

such as income, such as soil, such as housing, such as people, such as

savings, loans forests, water wells, tools knowledge, health, relationships,
skills committees,
networks

Economic assets These relate to household income and expenditure

and possessions that can be turned into money. For
example, in some countries, jewellery is an economic
asset which can be traded or sold when the household
needs cash. Cattle are also a saving mechanism in
some countries. At local level, savings and credit
opportunities are economic assets. Discussion about
economic assets often sets the context for the other
categories, because people will naturally begin to
discuss them.

Natural assets These include forests, rivers, grazing areas and wild fruits.
Discussion should be about whether these assets exist in the
local area and who has access to them. Trends in quality and
availability, such as deforestation or lowering of the water
table, should be assessed.

Constructed Constructed assets are man-made. These include basic

assets infrastructure such as houses, roads, schools, hospitals,
electricity cables and wells. They also include tools and
equipment that people use to be productive such as a
plough. Infrastructure is often directly managed by the
government, while tools and equipment are usually
privately owned and managed.

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Individual assets These include peoples skills, knowledge, ability to work and physical health. The size of
a household may affect these assets. For example, a household with many small children
may have fewer adults able to work because of
childcare responsibilities. People often draw upon their
individual assets to make the best use of assets in other
categories. For example, they may have traditional
knowledge of agricultural methods or edible wild
plants, which increases use of constructed or natural
assets. Individuals will have their own spiritual beliefs
which may affect their own or other peoples
vulnerability or capacity.

Social assets These consist of relationships and networks that exist in the community and with people
outside. They have an important influence on levels of vulnerability and capacity, but are
often neglected. The extended family is an important asset in this category, followed
closely by issues of leadership and ability to settle disputes. Membership of networks can
expand an individuals ability to access information,
such as a farmers co-operative providing access to
details about market prices. Good relationships can
lead to co-operation and the sharing of resources.

Social assets can contribute to peoples well-being by

strengthening identity, pride and a sense of
belonging. However, exclusion from groups can be a
powerful pressure which affects vulnerability.
Individuals spiritual beliefs can influence their
relationships.

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