Gender Perspective of Flood Early Warning Systems: People-Centered Approach

Abstract

Natural hazards early warning systems (EWS) are built on a solid technical and scientific foundation. However, a significant focus must be on those at risk and a systems approach that considers all the key risk factors. A people-centered flood EWS has proved to be more successful at conveying risk messages and protecting lives during times of crisis. The present study intends to analyze the gender perspective of flood early warning systems in Pakistan by using four components of a people-centered approach. The data acquired from the different sources in this study (including institutional key informant interviews = 30 and community focus groups = 32) is analyzed using a paradigm of gender analysis. The findings regarding gender analysis revealed that there was a lack of participation from women in the risk assessment process, and the institutions did not pay enough attention to the conventional knowledge and views of women and men. In most cases, women were not given hazard alerts since they only receive information about possible risks from men. Women were still reluctant to participate in the planning process for disaster response and capacity building because of societal norms and impediments. In addition, the study revealed that the EWS did not satisfy most of the requirements specified in a people-centered gender-sensitive EWS owing to the bureaucratic approach, lack of residents’ engagement, communication breakdown between people (at risk), and official risk messages.