Filipino PWDs struggle more in disaster recovery and preparedness
Persons with disabilities (PWDs) in the Philippines face significant challenges in preparing for and recovering from disasters, often finding themselves overlooked. Results of a recent nationwide survey by the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative (HHI) released this International Day of Persons with Disabilities found that PWDs are less prepared and less frequently able to recover from disasters compared to those without disabilities.
PWDs represented in the study include individuals who experience considerable difficulties with vision, hearing, communication, or physical activities such as walking, climbing steps, or self-care, including as a result of cognitive disabilities. According to the survey, this group represents five percent of the population. These disabilities are often linked to aging and chronic health conditions. Disabilities are also associated with lower levels of wealth and education, which further compound the barriers PWDs face.
Doubled hardships in recovery
Despite being exposed to disasters as frequently as the rest of the population living in the Philippines, PWDs are twice as likely to report they have not recovered at all from past disasters. Two-thirds of both PWDs and non-PWDs have experienced disasters, but 48% of PWDs report not recovering at all from these events, compared to only 24% for the rest of the population. This highlights the compound vulnerabilities and unaddressed challenges faced by PWDs.
The most frequently reported impact of disasters by both groups is financial and material (77% for PWDs and 76% for non-PWDs). Only a few reported (3%-17%) that past disasters impacted their physical and mental health, resulted in displacement, death of a relative, and social impact.
"These findings underscore the critical importance of providing appropriate and adapted assistance, including medical support, in disaster recovery efforts to foster true resilience and recovery for this group," says Dr. Patrick Vinck, HHI director of research and co-lead of the study.
Low preparedness
HHI developed a scoring system to assess disaster preparedness, evaluating dimensions like training participation, access to information, planning, social support, and material measures such as having a go-bag ready. Each of the five dimensions received a score from 0 to 10, with a total of up to 50.
The results indicated that, on average, PWDs are less prepared for disasters (17.1 out of 50) than those without disabilities (19.3 out of 50). In four dimensions, PWDs score 14%-57% lower than non-PWDs: training and drill participation (2.3 vs 3.6), material measures (3.9 vs 4.5), access to information (4.3 vs 4.9), and planning (3.6 vs 4.0). On a positive note, PWDs tend to have stronger social support networks (3.1) than non-PWDs (2.3).
"These results clearly show the importance of creating more inclusive training programs that are accessible and relevant to PWDs," says Dr. Vincenzo Bollettino, program director of the HHI Resilient Communities Program and co-lead of the study.
Dr. Bollettino further notes that "given the significant challenges PWDs face in disaster recovery, it is important that future research focuses on illuminating the specific kinds of barriers PWDs face in preparing for disasters and identifies the kinds of interventions that contribute best to PWD disaster resilience."
Climate change perceptions
The survey revealed that 1 in 3 PWD Filipinos has not heard of climate change. Fewer PWDs believe climate change is real (79%) and caused by human activity (51%) compared to non-PWDs (86% and 67%, respectively). However, more PWDs believe they will be significantly affected by climate change within the next five years (54%) compared to non-PWDs (46%).
"This further underscores the need for accessible and targeted education and outreach efforts to better equip PWDs with the knowledge needed to adapt and respond to climate-related challenges," adds Dr. Patrick Vinck. The perceived risk of climate change can contribute to stress and anxiety, especially among PWDs who face challenges in preparing for and recovering from disasters.
Nationwide survey on disaster and climate resilience
HHI conducted a nationwide survey in February - March 2024 to understand the factors contributing to disaster and climate resilience among Filipinos. This 2024 nationwide survey collected data from 4,608 Filipinos using a standardized questionnaire administered during face-to-face interviews by trained local enumerators.
HHI Resilient Communities, a research program at HHI, has been operating in the Philippines since 2015 to inform disaster risk reduction (DRR) and climate change adaptation (CCA) programming and policy. HHI is an academic and research center in humanitarian crisis and leadership at Harvard University.
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