Extent and evaluation of vulnerability for disaster risk reduction of urban Nuku'alofa, Tonga

Abstract

The Kingdom of Tonga, its people, economy and day-to-day operability are extremely vulnerable to the perils of natural hazards and climate change. Indeed, Tonga is rated the second most at-risk nation in the Pacific. The aim of this study was to assess the urban resilience of Tonga's capital Nuku'alofa to the effects of climate changes and natural disasters. This paper identifies the natural hazard risk in the Tongan capital of Nuku'alofa by providing an integrated disaster and climate risk reduction assessment. It outlines major gaps in risk awareness and community-based disaster risk management practices through extensive literature research, the analysis of secondary information and consultations with stakeholders. This research adopts an indicator-based approach to assess each element of the country's disaster management system. Furthermore, it assesses policy and regulatory frameworks that define Nuku'alofa's approach to disaster management and climate change. Both quantitative and qualitative analyses were used in this study, which co-benefits urban development in Tongan communities to enhance urban resilience. The main objective of this model is to rank a given set of infrastructure sector indicators based on their disaster and development-related vulnerability. Disaster risk depends on both physical vulnerability and a wide range of social, economic, and environmental aspects. For a better risk understanding, a holistic perspective was applied to assess the natural hazard risk for Nuku'alofa. The comprehensive approach of this paper outlines the current disaster risk resilience profile of Nuku'alofa, including current hazard assessments and urban disaster resilience assessments, while recommending mitigation measures to help reduce the risk.