<< More about the Community Risk Programme

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• Past Interventions
• Current Issues for Fiji
• Programme Response

The Pacific is acknowledged as being among the most threatened regions in the world, with the continuing presence of natural, human induced, technological and environmental hazards. While the threats presented by these hazards may be seasonal or differ from country to country in respect to type, frequency or intensity, no country is immune to their devastating impacts.

The challenge of achieving sustainable development goals, including poverty alleviation and protection of the environment, cannot be achieved unless the impacts of disasters on vulnerable communities is taken into account. While not all risks to development result from the impact of disasters, the reduction of the potential for such events needs to be central to any programmes designed to achieve and maintain sustainable development. This potential can only be effectively reduced, in the context of the development process, by adopting a broader and more integrated approach to hazard mitigation and risk management.

The SOPAC Community Risk Programme offers such an approach to the management of community risk and targets three key areas: strengthening the resilience to disasters, mitigating the effects of hazards and mainstreaming disaster risk management as part of the national development planning process. Through a High Level Advocacy strategy the Community Risk Programme is encouraging national commitment to the adoption of a whole of government approach to reducing community vulnerability and strengthening disaster risk management arrangements in order to improve national development planning processes in member countries.

Past Interventions

Fiji’s geographical location makes it susceptible to a broad range of natural hazards. It is also susceptible to technological and human induced hazards. Past interventions have sought to broaden national capacities in disaster management and risk reduction. One such intervention was the assistance given to the Fiji National Disaster Management Office [NDMO] in the assessment their needs with regards to the Comprehensive Hazard and Risk Management Programme [CHARM] . Another intervention was when Fiji was used as a case study in examining how to reduce the impacts of environmental emergencies through early warning and preparedness in the case of El Nino/Southern Oscillation [ENSO] (Kaloumaira, 2001).

Fiji was also used as one of the test countries for the Environmental Vulnerability Index [EVI], as well as the venue for initial meetings of the EVI project underway in other member countries of SOPAC. Fiji’s data file on the EVI was compiled and completed in 2001 .

A number of specific projects covered parts of Fiji. These were:

• A community based flood preparedness and response plan was developed for Ba, aimed to provide the flood vulnerable community with an early warning system to improve their preparedness to cope with flood hazards that pose a high risk in the area .
• The Suva Earthquake Risk Management Plan is now the core document that Fiji government is using to manage earthquake risks and develop mitigation strategies.
• A volcano hazard-mapping project was completed for Taveuni, one of 14 active volcanoes in the Pacific region, to better understand the volcanic risks on the island.
• Other volcano hazard studies and exercises were undertaken for the islands of Kadavu, Koro and Rotuma. .
• Support in kind and funds were provided to the Fiji National Disaster Management Office to assist conduct the 2001 Fiji Disaster Awareness week.
• In common with Apia, Nukualofa, and Port Moresby, seismic microzonation mapping was done for Suva (Shorten et al, 2001).
• A building damage assessment was conducted in Suva following the civil coup of 2000 to promote a new approach to damage assessment methodology, which could be used for future natural and human induced disasters (Teakle & Biukoto, 2001).
• Pacific Cities Initiative - Suva and other capital cities of the Pacific region are at high risk from a wide range of threats from natural and man-made hazards. This situation is being redressed to a significant extent under the Pacific Cities initiative of SOPAC. The Pacific Cities initiative - a move to bring all-hazards assessment under one banner in high-risk urban areas of the Pacific - has matured quickly over the past several years. The risks facing cities in the Pacific arise from a wide variety of hazards including earthquake, tsunami, slope failure, cyclone and related hazards including storm surge, drought and flooding and environmental hazards such as pollution. Pacific Cities conceptually ties together projects having disparate origins and funding sources. Pacific Cities aims at an understanding of the hazards facing Pacific Island communities in order to assess the elements at risk and their vulnerability - particularly human vulnerability.

Current Issues for Fiji

The critical issues faced by Fiji as mentioned in Fiji’s National Development Plan and various assessment reports, which relate to the Community Risk Programme and are interrelated with the other programmes of SOPAC are:

• Fiji’s vulnerability to natural and man-made disasters, such as hurricanes, cyclones, floods, fires and severe droughts. In particular, the increased risk of flooding and inundation to coastal settlements.
• Past response efforts to disasters [provisions of rations and so forth] have reduced the capacity of communities to help themselves.
• Loss of traditional knowledge in coping with disasters.
• Climate change and sea level rise.
• Need for greater use of Remote Sensing and GIS tools to provide information for disaster planning and to evaluate immediate disaster damage.
• Vulnerability of rural population due to remoteness of markets, impact of natural disasters, high cost of transportation & communication.
• Increased risks associated with urbanisation and informal development in semi-urban areas.
• Lack of community awareness of risks and hazards mitigation.
• Need to mainstream Disaster Risk Management into the national development decision-making process.

Programme Response

A comprehensive and strategic response is in place for the Community Risk Programme to address the needs of the Fiji Islands in relation to the sustainable development issues mentioned above.

The Programme has met specific requests from the Fiji Islands through:

• Review of the National Disaster Management Plan and the organisational arrangements that currently exist in the National Disaster Management Office.
• Review of the capacity of the fire and emergency services in Fiji.
• A study is ongoing focussed on developing a blue print on Integrated Catchment Management Plan as a means to abate increasing flood damages, looking into flooding issues of the upper Rewa River Wainimala Catchment.

To standardise the level of assistance in the Pacific, the Community Risk Programme cuts across the development needs of the Pacific member countries. Regionally, the activities of the Community Risk Programme include:

• The provision of support where appropriate for Fiji Islands’ representation at international training programmes, workshops and conferences.
• The provision of high-level advocacy to promote the mainstreaming of risk management through the application of CHARM.
• Conducting CHARM national training courses and workshops
• The provision of post disaster technical or institutional support following the impact of disasters.
• The environmental vulnerability index – a tool that assesses the vulnerability of the countries of the world to assist national stakeholders in decision-making and to influence policy to reduce vulnerabilities of Pacific communities.