Claiming the human right to protection from disasters

This essay outlines why, by extension, it is the citizen's right to demand protection from disasters from his/her government and other duty-bearers. If disasters are unresolved problems of development, then failing to resolve these problems is denying people their right to protection from disasters. Losses due to disaster (numbers of people affected and economic, social and environmental assets) are on the increase.

The concept of disaster risk reduction (DRR) has been developed and widely accepted globally as a good approach to reduce disaster losses. The concept is based on the premise that disasters are not unpredictable and unavoidable occurrences, but are the product of unresolved problems of development. Investment in DRR has therefore been motivated, there is need to develop a new paradigm that looks at DRR as a critical development agenda and a function that must be performed by government.