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Disaster risk reduction in
Gracias a Dios, Honduras
GOAL Honduras
T
he United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
global report on Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) iden-
tified Honduras as one of the world’s most vulnerable
countries to natural disasters and highlighted the risk of disas-
ters as a primary obstacle to the sustainable development of the
country. The Global Climate Risk Index assessment completed
in 2009 ranked Honduras as the country most affected by
weather-related events in the decade from 1997 to 2007. The
World Bank ranks Honduras among the countries most vulner-
able to natural disasters in the world.
Within Honduras, the territory of Gracias a Dios is one of the most
vulnerable regions affected by natural disasters. Among the many
factors that determine the high social, economic, environmental,
cultural and political vulnerability of the department are:
• Its physical isolation from the rest of the country
• Its geographic exposure to the Atlantic Hurricane Corridor
• The high indices of human poverty of its population (Gracias a
Dios has the highest indices of human poverty in Honduras, at
52.98 per cent)
• The high degree of illiteracy
• The extent of environmental degradation in the upper catch-
ments of the rivers flowing through the department.
Neither the Government of Honduras National Emergency
Response Committee (COPECO) nor the Honduran Red Cross
has offices or representatives in Gracias a Dios. The Ministries of
Health and Education, the National Fire Department, the Police
and Armed Forces have limited presence and even more limited
resources for disaster response activities. With the exception of the
Ministries of Health and Education, government administration
offices are primarily concentrated in Puerto Lempira, the capital
of Gracias a Dios.
The most frequent hazards in the department are flooding (due to
major storm events and environmental degradation) and hurricane
winds. Several major hurricanes and tropical storms have significantly
impacted the territory of Gracias a Dios in the last 40 years alone,
including Fifí, Mitch, Stan, Wilma, Beta andGamma and, more recently,
Hurricane Felix (2007) and Tropical StormNo. 16 (2008). The typical
hurricane track images shown in the image opposite were published
by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
and are based on recorded data from over 1,325 tropical storm and
hurricane tracks over the last 150 years in the Gulf of Mexico.
Because of the vulnerability of the region, when major storms
occur, the impact and damage caused are significant. The situa-
tion is even more complex considering the ethnic diversity in the
region (i.e. Miskitos, Garífunas, Tawahkas, Pech and
Mestizos). This ethnic diversity can be considered a
strength in the sense that the populations have devel-
oped experience over the years in adapting to disaster
risks. However, because of the dramatic rate of deterio-
ration of natural resources on which these communities
depend, the loss of knowledge of traditional practices of
DRR and the impact of climate change, these commu-
nities are extremely at risk from natural disasters, and
they need to develop new capacities and increased resil-
ience to confront these challenges.
GOAL began working in Honduras in 1998, in the
aftermath of Hurricane Mitch when more than 10,000
Hondurans lost their lives in the landslides and flood-
ing caused by the storm. In 2002 GOAL began to work
in the remote communities of Gracias a Dios. Due to
the prevalence of natural disasters in Gracias a Dios,
much of GOAL’s work focuses on equipping and
training communities for DRR. Since 2005 GOAL has
been involved in community-based disaster prepared-
ness through the DIPECHO programme (Disaster
Preparedness Programme of the Humanitarian Aid
Department of the European Commission). In total
over 30,000 people have benefited from various inter-
ventions and capacity-building initiatives to increase
communities’ resilience to natural disasters, including:
• The installation of radio equipment and early warning
systems
• Training and equipping local search and rescue and
first aid brigades
• Provision of emergency stock
• Improvements to stores
• Health centres and emergency operation centres
• Community infrastructure.
Training and equipping communities to respond
quickly and effectively to disasters is a key objective of
the programme. Some key elements of the programme
are described below.
Cultural sensitivity
Gracias a Dios is part of the wider region of La Mosquitia
which includes the north-west tip of Nicaragua. This
isolated region is inhabited primarily by the Misquito
native Indian community. GOAL focuses on building
on traditional indigenous DRR practices and working
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