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DRRR Info

The document discusses the concept of vulnerability as defined by the UNDP, emphasizing its importance in assessing the potential loss to elements exposed to hazards. It highlights various social, environmental, and economic factors contributing to vulnerability, particularly in the context of the Philippines, and underscores the need for effective mitigation and preparedness measures. Additionally, it outlines methods for quantifying vulnerability to better inform disaster risk reduction strategies.

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JD Acudesin
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2 views

DRRR Info

The document discusses the concept of vulnerability as defined by the UNDP, emphasizing its importance in assessing the potential loss to elements exposed to hazards. It highlights various social, environmental, and economic factors contributing to vulnerability, particularly in the context of the Philippines, and underscores the need for effective mitigation and preparedness measures. Additionally, it outlines methods for quantifying vulnerability to better inform disaster risk reduction strategies.

Uploaded by

JD Acudesin
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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SECTION 2.

2 VULNERABILITY OF EACH EXPOSED ELEMENT

According to the UNDP, vulnerability is "the degree of loss to each element


should a hazard of a given severity occur". Physical, social, economic, and
environmental factors determine the likelihood and severity of damage due
to a given hazard. Recent earthquake, volcanic, and hydrometeorological
hazard events highlight the need to assess the vulnerability levels of areas of
the Philippines that are exposed to these hazards. With this, resources
available can be made to work more efficiently to reduce vulnerabilities.
Such measures include mitigation, prediction and warning, preparedness,
and building capacities to withstand and cope with hazards. The root causes
of vulnerability, such as poverty and poor governance, must also be
addressed to sustain efforts to reduce vulnerability.

Section Objectives:

1. Distinguish vulnerability from exposure.

2. Explain the causes of vulnerability.

3. Enumerate vulnerabilities of the elements at risk to hazards.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) defines vulnerability as


"the degree of loss to a given element at risk at a certain severity level." The
vulnerability of populations, buildings, and other elements at risk is assigned
a value between 0 and 1 depending on the percentage of loss that might be
incurred when a hazard event causes a disaster.

Social, Environmental, and Economic Factors of Vulnerability

Social. Certain population groups may be more vulnerable than others. For
example, the very young and the old are more exposed to most hazards than
any other age groups. A rapidly aging population is more vulnerable as
health, economic growth, and mobility issues are more pronounced. Can you
tell why? Below is a list of the most vulnerable populations:

People with disabilities

Children

Seniors

Medication-dependent individuals (e.g., diabetics and schizophrenics)

Women, especially those who are single, single parents, or the unemployed

Ethnic minorities, aboriginal or indigenous people

Homeless or “street people”

Incarcerated individuals

Marginalized groups (i.e., by society or the community)

Among the most vulnerable elements are the schoolchildren, especially


those in the pre-elementary levels. The education sector is often exposed to
hazards yet it is a potent agent in reducing vulnerability. The education
dimension includes vulnerability of school children and school buildings,
access to education, and access to information about disaster risk reduction
and hazard adaptation. The use of information dissemination and education
campaigns should lead to a well-informed and motivated population and,
hence, to disaster risk reduction. To elicit action among the people, their
perception of disasters as influenced by their beliefs, experiences, and
culture must be taken into account. Explicit education programs among
children and adults should result in greater awareness of risk, vulnerability,
and exposure to hazard events.

Environmental. Compared with developed countries, developing nations face


more exposure and vulnerability because of their relative inability to adapt to
changes and to create wealth that may enhance resilience. Rapid
urbanization in hazardous areas heightens vulnerability to disaster risk. The
quintupling of the world’s urban population, mostly in less-developed
countries, in the last 60 years and the rapid development of megacities
mean greater exposure and vulnerability. More than half of the world’s
people currently live in cities and with the rate of migration from rural areas,
two-thirds will be urban-dwellers by the year 2025. This increase in
population will make it more difficult for governments and citizens hard up
for funds to cope with the effects of hazard events. The increasing number of
informal settlers forced by circumstances to occupy areas at or close to river
systems, coastal areas, and steep hillsides exposes more people to
inundation and landslides.

Economic. Economic vulnerability is the susceptibility of individuals,


communities, businesses, and governments to absorb or cushion the effects
of a hazard event. Rural households are found to be more vulnerable than
those in urban environments because of the greater number of people living
in poverty. This is tied to the more limited access to markets and other
services. In the more traditional communities where gender inequalities are
more pronounced, women are more vulnerable than men partly because
they lack access to livelihoods. Family responsibilities and reproductive role
also contribute to their vulnerability. The resourcefulness and resilience of
women should be recognized so they can be tapped to play critical roles in
times of crisis.

Quantifying Vulnerability
Quantifying the tangible aspects of vulnerability and loss is useful in
estimating more precisely how much mitigation and preparedness measures
shall be applied.

There are many methods of expressing vulnerability. Some of these,


especially those pertaining to future effects of hazards, are based on data
about the intensity of previous hazard events and the severity of their
effects.

Vulnerability can be expressed simply as a quantity between 0 (lowest


degree of vulnerability) and 1 (highest degree of vulnerability). For people,
vulnerability can be measured as a ratio of casualties or injured to the total
population. For buildings, it can also be expressed as a repair cost or as the
degree of physical damage. When dealing with a larger area, it may be
measured in terms of the proportion of damaged buildings. For example, a
typhoon with wind speed of 130 km/hr may render 20% of buildings heavily
damaged. The same typhoon may result in an average repair cost ratio of
10%. Vulnerability of a human population area can be expressed, for
instance, as 5% killed and 30% injured in an intensity IX earthquake. What
would be the number of potential victims if a city with 5 million people (the
city’s exposure) is going to be hit by an earthquake of the same intensity
level?

The damage that might be incurred should increase with rising hazard
intensity. The 20% of buildings suffering heavy damage in a 130 km/hr winds
is likely to increase to 50% in a 160 km/hr wind.

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