Tribhuwan University

PULCHOWK CAMPUS
Pulchowk, Lalitpur

Project Proposal on

Gender Perspectives in Disaster Risk Management and Its Impact on

Vulnerability: A Comprehensive Study

Submitted by:

Pranish Adhikari

079msdrm011

Submitted to:

Dr. Sanjay Upreti

Research Methodology

IOE, Pulchowk Campus

1. Introduction
The disaster affects disproportionately among communities, societies, men, women or
any other groups. The effects of the disasters are seen to be increasing worldwide in
the present scenario. So, as the frequency and intensity of disasters increases, the
requirement or need of disaster risk management (DRM) also increases.

Disaster risk management (DRM) is a crucial field that plays a pivotal role in reducing
the impacts of the natural as well as man-made hazards and in safeguarding the
communities, societies and its people. As we all know, the impacts of the disasters are
not gender-neutral but still the gender perspective for management of disaster has often
been overlooked. This creates some lack of acknowledgement about the diversity in
vulnerability among communities and its people. Moreover, this creates gap in
understanding about the differential experiences of men, women and gender diverse
individuals during disasters. Subsequently, this has also affected in the development
and implementation of the effective DRM strategies and policies.

This thesis will examine the impact of the gender perspectives on disaster risk
management and the subsequent implications for vulnerability. Moreover, this research
will contribute to the existing body of knowledge by analyzing the unique challenges
faced by women, men and other gender groups in disaster contexts and also help
formulating strategies to enhance gender responsive DRM policies and practices. From
a theoretical perspective, this study will draw upon feminist and gender based analysis
to understand the role that the psychological and socio-economic gender dynamics play
in enhancing vulnerability during disasters. This shall be done through an extensive
study of the literature related to gender based violence, poverty and unequal access to
resources related to disaster risk. Primary data collection will include semi-structured
interviews with vulnerable populations to gain further insight into the perspectives of
gender in the context of disaster risk management. The findings and results from this
research project will offer key insights about how gender perspectives can be effectively
incorporated into DRM strategies and policies to reduce vulnerability and strive for
gender equitable response. Thus, this thesis will shed light on how the integration of
available gender sensitive policies and procedures can ultimately support the broader
development and implementation of effective DRM strategies.

2. Need of Research
Disasters affect individuals and communities indiscriminately, yet gender significantly
influence how individuals experience and cope with these events. Women, men and
gender diverse individuals have different roles, responsibilities and access to resources.
And, studies have increasingly shown that gender roles, norms, power dynamics and
socio-economic factors significantly influence vulnerability and capacities to disasters. In
recent years, some studies are also done on gendered nature of natural disaster which
shows that in societies where the socio-economic status of women is low, natural
disasters kill more women than men- both directly and indirectly through related post
disaster events. The difference in mortality lies in the fact that women in general have
lower socio-economic status, which in turn, leads to unequal access to opportunities
and unequal exposure to risks, making them more vulnerable to disasters. Women’s
increased vulnerability to disaster has many dimensions. Women’s reproductive roles
can limit their chances of survival (e.g. those in their final stages of pregnancy and
women with young kids are less mobile). Moreover, gender-based violence tends to
increase in post-disaster contexts, further exacerbating vulnerability. However, the
existing literature and practices in disaster risk management tend to adopt a gender-
blind approach, overlooking these subtle variations.

Therefore, there is an urgent need to conduct comprehensive research on both national

and international level that explicitly examines the gender perspectives within disaster
risk management. The understanding of disaster risk management has to be evolved to
incorporate a more comprehensive and inclusive approach. On a national level,
research could analyze how gender-based disparities between communities can
contribute to increased disaster vulnerability, and how gender roles can shape resiliency
and recovery. On an international level, research could look at how gender
consideration influence international aid and response following disasters, and how
gender based norms can affect the implementation of international policies. Additionally,
research could focus on how international guidelines can be better applied to local
contexts to promote gender sensitive disaster risk management and reduce
vulnerability. This will lead to the recognition of the critical role that gender plays in
determining vulnerability and resilience in the face of disasters.

3. Importance of the Study

The study of gender perspective in disaster risk management is an important part of
disaster risk reduction, as gender impacts the propensity of individuals and groups to be
vulnerable or resilient to disasters. Understanding the gender perspectives in disaster
risk management is crucial for several reasons. It enables us to identify the specific
needs, challenges and strengths of different gender groups during disasters. This
knowledge can inform the development of targeted and effective interventions that
address the unique vulnerabilities faced by women, men and gender-diverse
individuals. By incorporating gender perspectives into disaster risk management
strategies, we can enhance the resilience, adaptive capacities and post disaster
recovery of communities as a whole. Recognizing and harnessing the diverse skills,
knowledge and experiences of all genders can lead to more inclusive and sustainable
disaster risk reduction measures.

The Asian Development Bank and the World Bank led a gender –inclusive damage and
needs assessment following the massive flood across Pakistan (2010). Gender
inequalities exacerbated the post disaster situation. The assessment identified that (i)
many women and girls felt a loss of honor and dignity due to lack of privacy in the
camps; (ii) several suffered from severe malnutrition and poor hygiene conditions; (iii)
women had limited access to incomes, assets, or livelihoods; and (iv) they faced an
increased vulnerability to violence against women and girls. After the massive
earthquake of magnitude 7.6 in Nepal, the study conducted by the Central Department
of Population Studies (CDPS) (May 2016) found that women’s feeling of insecurity has
grown high after the earthquake and more than half of the female household heads from
all domains reported feeling of insecurity and fear after the earthquake. Most women
belonging to female-headed family than the male–headed family felt discomfort eating,
sleeping and living in a temporary shelter or camp or their own damaged house. Many
females faced problems of settling during their menstruation period, spregnancy and
also felt privacy problems for changing clothes during their stay in temporary shelter.
Among 3000 survey respondents, it was reported that 9% of women faced sexual
violence post disaster.

Thus, understanding gender perspectives in disaster risk management and its impact
on vulnerability is an essential step to mapping out a detailed disaster risk reduction
plan that values the experiences of all people. Research on gender perspectives further
enables us to draw correlations between contextual factors and vulnerability, allowing
us to create more sustainable solutions and improved preparedness measures.

4. Problem Statement
A variety of gender perspectives are important when it comes to disaster risk
management. These perspectives can include: women’s perspectives, LGBTQIA+
perspectives, people with disabilities, indigenous perspectives, and more. Each
perspective has different perspectives on what needs to be done to protect people and
economies from disasters. In order to improve disaster risk management, it is important
to have a variety of perspectives when it comes to creating and implementing plans and
policies. Despite the growing recognition of gender as a significant factor in disaster risk
management, there is a lack of in-depth research that systematically examines the
gendered dimensions of vulnerability.
During surveys or case studies on the impact of disasters on women and men and how
they recover from them, some variables such as monetary poverty and disaster losses
are measured at household level. But treating households as a single unit assumes that
resources to cope with disasters are shared equally inside the households. Given the
gaps in access to and control over assets between men and women, this is an
unrealistic assumption. Focusing on female and male household headship to identify
gender gaps or gender differentiated impacts is not a substitute or solution to this
problem. Male-headed households tend to be two-parent households, while female-
headed ones are often (but not always) single parent households. As a result, the latter
face specific challenges that could be unrelated to gender dynamics. Using this variable
also wrongly assumes that women in male-headed households have equivalent
outcomes to women in female-headed ones. Surveys tend to measure housing damage
and agricultural land loss, but often do not record smaller household losses. This
includes kitchen appliances and sewing machines, which are usually used by women, in
timesaving and income-generating activities. It is also reasonable to assume that, if
owned by women, these smaller, high-value assets make up a significant share of their
total assets and losing them may have significant consequences for their welfare.
Countries often do not invest enough in gender statistics, do not collect data on a
frequent basis and lack the willingness to collect data on often sensitive issues, such as
sexual orientation, gender identity, indigenous status, and HIV status. Such country-
level data gaps hinder comparisons of pre- and post-disaster conditions of the
population as a whole.

Moreover, the existing literature tends to focus on quantitative indicators of vulnerability

without delving into the underlying gender dynamics and power relations. As a result,
there is limited understanding of how gender shapes vulnerability during different
phases of the disaster management cycle.

5. Research Hypothesis and Questions

There are numerous questions which supports the research. These questions help to
analyze the exact need or importance of gender perspectives on disaster risk
management.

1. How can gender gaps in disaster risk management be addressed to ensure that
both men and women are protected from disasters?
2. What kinds of factors influence the different levels of vulnerability between men
and women when it comes to disasters?
3. How do gender roles and norms impact the preparedness, response and
recovery phases of disaster management? And what are the implications for
vulnerability?
4. How does the inclusion or exclusion of gender perspectives in disaster risk
management affect the overall vulnerability of communities?
5. What are some innovative approaches to increase the participation of women in
disaster risk assessment and management?
6. What challenges exist in bridging the gap between disaster risk management
policies and practices for women and men?
7. What are the social, cultural and economic factors that contribute to gender
based vulnerabilities in disaster situations?