IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/nathaz/v104y2020i3d10.1007_s11069-020-04271-7.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Learning from the tropical cyclones that ravaged Zimbabwe: policy implications for effective disaster preparedness

Author

Listed:
  • Emmanuel Mavhura

    (Bindura University of Science Education)

Abstract

In view of increasing cyclonic activity in the Indian Ocean, nations in southern Africa should prepare well for flood-related disasters. This paper critically examined the level of preparedness of the government of Zimbabwe to cyclonic disasters using the country’s three most disastrous cyclones during the past two decades: (a) Cyclone Eline of 2000, (b) Cyclone Dineo of 2017 and (c) Cyclone Idai of 2019. In-depth qualitative interviews, post-disaster lessons learned workshops and a review of disaster policies provided data on five key preparedness measures: (a) prepositioning of resources, (b) early warnings, (c) evacuation, (d) citizen participation and (e) effective response. The findings demonstrate that the government of Zimbabwe remains in the disaster-response-disaster cycle instead of a proactive preventive approach to cyclones. Limited financial and material resources constrain effective preparedness to disasters. These problems stem from a weak legislation governing disaster risk reduction. This study therefore proposes five-policy implications for effective disaster preparedness.

Suggested Citation

  • Emmanuel Mavhura, 2020. "Learning from the tropical cyclones that ravaged Zimbabwe: policy implications for effective disaster preparedness," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 104(3), pages 2261-2275, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:nathaz:v:104:y:2020:i:3:d:10.1007_s11069-020-04271-7
    DOI: 10.1007/s11069-020-04271-7
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s11069-020-04271-7
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s11069-020-04271-7?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Sanket Mohapatra & George Joseph & Dilip Ratha, 2012. "Remittances and natural disasters: ex-post response and contribution to ex-ante preparedness," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 14(3), pages 365-387, June.
    2. Emmanuel Mavhura, 2016. "Disaster legislation: a critical review of the Civil Protection Act of Zimbabwe," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 80(1), pages 605-621, January.
    3. Yuqin Jiang & Zhenlong Li & Susan L. Cutter, 2019. "Social Network, Activity Space, Sentiment, and Evacuation: What Can Social Media Tell Us?," Annals of the American Association of Geographers, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 109(6), pages 1795-1810, November.
    4. A. Fernández Bou & R. Sá & M. Cataldi, 2015. "Flood forecasting in the upper Uruguay River basin," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 79(2), pages 1239-1256, November.
    5. Galateia Terti & Isabelle Ruin & Sandrine Anquetin & Jonathan Gourley, 2015. "Dynamic vulnerability factors for impact-based flash flood prediction," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 79(3), pages 1481-1497, December.
    6. Rodríguez-Espíndola, Oscar & Albores, Pavel & Brewster, Christopher, 2018. "Disaster preparedness in humanitarian logistics: A collaborative approach for resource management in floods," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 264(3), pages 978-993.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Feiyue Wang & Ziling Xie & Zhongwei Pei & Dingli Liu, 2022. "Emergency Relief Chain for Natural Disaster Response Based on Government-Enterprise Coordination," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(18), pages 1-22, September.
    2. repec:thr:techub:10027:y:2022:i:1:p:717-726 is not listed on IDEAS
    3. Dickson Machimbidza & Louis Nyahunda & Jabulani C. Makhubele, 2022. "The importance of social work roles in disaster risk management in Zimbabwe," Technium Social Sciences Journal, Technium Science, vol. 27(1), pages 717-726, January.
    4. Mavhura, Emmanuel & Raj Aryal, Komal, 2023. "Disaster mortalities and the Sendai Framework Target A: Insights from Zimbabwe," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 165(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Shaikh M. S. U. Eskander & Sam Fankhauser, 2022. "Income Diversification and Income Inequality: Household Responses to the 2013 Floods in Pakistan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(1), pages 1-12, January.
    2. Christian Hubert Ebeke, 2011. "Does the dual-citizenship recognition determine the level and the utilization of international remittances? Cross-Country Evidence," CERDI Working papers halshs-00559528, HAL.
    3. Jean-Louis COMBES & Christian EBEKE & Mireille NTSAMA ETOUNDI, 2011. "Are Foreign Aid and Remittances a Hedge against Food Price Shocks in Developing Countries?," Working Papers 201121, CERDI.
    4. Ilham Haouas & Naceur Kheraief & Arusha Cooray & Syed Jawad Hussain Shahzad, 2019. "Time-Varying Casual Nexuses Between Remittances and Financial Development in Some MENA Countries," Working Papers 1294, Economic Research Forum, revised 2019.
    5. Fattahi, Mohammad & Keyvanshokooh, Esmaeil & Kannan, Devika & Govindan, Kannan, 2023. "Resource planning strategies for healthcare systems during a pandemic," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 304(1), pages 192-206.
    6. World Bank, 2012. "Gaining from Migration : Trends and Policy Lessons in the Greater Mekong Sub-region," World Bank Publications - Reports 13248, The World Bank Group.
    7. De Boeck, Kim & Decouttere, Catherine & Jónasson, Jónas Oddur & Vandaele, Nico, 2022. "Vaccine supply chains in resource-limited settings: Mitigating the impact of rainy season disruptions," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 301(1), pages 300-317.
    8. Diehlmann, Florian & Klein, Miriam & Wiens, Marcus & Lüttenberg, Markus & Schultmann, Frank, 2020. "On the value of accurate demand information in public-private emergency collaborations," Working Paper Series in Production and Energy 51, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Institute for Industrial Production (IIP).
    9. Sandulika Abesinghe & Nayomi Kankanamge & Tan Yigitcanlar & Surabhi Pancholi, 2023. "Image of a City through Big Data Analytics: Colombo from the Lens of Geo-Coded Social Media Data," Future Internet, MDPI, vol. 15(1), pages 1-21, January.
    10. Sperling, Martina & Schryen, Guido, 2022. "Decision support for disaster relief: Coordinating spontaneous volunteers," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 299(2), pages 690-705.
    11. Christian Hubert Ebeke, 2011. "Remittances, Countercyclicality, Openness and Government Size," Recherches économiques de Louvain, De Boeck Université, vol. 77(4), pages 89-114.
    12. Rezapour, Shabnam & Naderi, Nazanin & Morshedlou, Nazanin & Rezapourbehnagh, Shaghayegh, 2018. "Optimal deployment of emergency resources in sudden onset disasters," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 204(C), pages 365-382.
    13. David Antonio C., 2011. "How do International Financial Flows to Developing Countries Respond to Natural Disasters?," Global Economy Journal, De Gruyter, vol. 11(4), pages 1-38, December.
    14. Headey, Derek & Taffesse, Alemayehu Seyoum & You, Liangzhi, 2014. "Diversification and Development in Pastoralist Ethiopia," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 200-213.
    15. Mohammad Salahuddin & Jeff Gow, 2015. "The relationship between economic growth and remittances in the presence of cross-sectional dependence," Journal of Developing Areas, Tennessee State University, College of Business, vol. 49(1), pages 207-221, January-M.
    16. Christian Hubert Ebeke, 2010. "The Effect of Remittances on Child Labor: Cross-Country Evidence," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 30(1), pages 351-364.
    17. Éric Rougier & Nicolas Yol, 2019. "The volatility effect of diaspora's location," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 42(6), pages 1796-1827, June.
    18. Combes, Jean-Louis & Ebeke, Christian, 2011. "Remittances and Household Consumption Instability in Developing Countries," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 39(7), pages 1076-1089, July.
    19. Vijaya Sunder M & Anupama Prashar, 2023. "State and citizen responsiveness in fighting a pandemic crisis: A systems thinking perspective," Systems Research and Behavioral Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 40(1), pages 170-193, January.
    20. Quentin Wodon & Andrea Liverani & George Joseph & Nathalie Bougnoux, 2014. "Climate Change and Migration : Evidence from the Middle East and North Africa," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 18929, December.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:spr:nathaz:v:104:y:2020:i:3:d:10.1007_s11069-020-04271-7. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.