Oxfam have asked to adopt Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) programmes so that future calamities cause minimal damage and loss to the country and its people. Five years ago Pakistan faced massive destruction caused by the Kashmir earthquake. Today, over twenty million people are affected by the biggest floods the country has ever seen.
Javeria Afzal, Oxfam's Programme Coordinator-DRR and Climate Change in Pakistan, said, "The massive devastation caused by this worst flood in living memory for Pakistan was compounded by inadequate investment in strengthening the national disaster management system".
She said there must not be a next time. The damage caused could have been less, if more substantial investment had been made in Disaster Risk Management. Plans to prepare and adapt for future disasters must receive investment and be implemented now, she added.
With early recovery and reconstruction work underway, she said that it is vital to invest in local authorities that can tackle and address risks better - working with communities to protect their families, livestock and houses during disasters such as earthquakes and floods will be critical for this to become a reality.
In a disaster prone country and with future disasters likely to be more intense, more substantial investment should be made at district and community level so that men, women and children are protected from the impacts of future disasters and damage is minimised.