Risk Wise

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Toe the line for behavioural change: a capacity

development system for disaster risk management

Dr Rakesh Dubey, Disaster Management Institute, Bhopal;

Dr Christina Kamlage, InWEnt – Capacity Building International, Berlin; Dr Jürgen Bischoff, Director, ASEM;

Florian Bemmerlein-Lux, ifanos concept & planning, Nuremberg and Dr Sandhya Chatterji, ifanos concept India

n 23-24 April 2008, a key planning workshop on

‘Capacity Building for (industrial) Disaster Risk

Management’ (iDRM) was held in the city of Bhopal, the

site of a terrible accident in 1984 at the Union Carbide pesti-

cide plant – a deadly event that released approximately 40 metric

tonnes of methyl isocynate (MIC) into the atmosphere.

This incident sparked serious debate both in India and abroad on

the issues of chemical safety, and helped focus attention on protect-

ing people and the environment from ‘high consequence/low

frequency events’ by providing regulatory provisions to industries

as well as civil administrations. General consciousness about the

topic of risk rose. India enacted the 1986 Environment (Protection)

Act, which contained several regulations aimed at preventing any

future chemical accidents.

However, although India has created rules and regulations regard-

ing chemical safety, there is still a lack of proper monitoring and

implementation guidelines. Apart from adapting and detailing rules

and norms, what will matter in the long run is behav-

ioural change in the corporate sector, among the

regulating authorities and first responders, and in polit-

ical and civil society. A tragedy like the Bhopal accident

only provides momentum. It acts as a trigger to jump-

start change. As long as disaster preparedness is not

integrated into everyday traditions for ‘doing/not doing’

things, a repeat of the catastrophe remains a possible

scenario. The willingness and conviction to develop new

perspectives in prevention and preparedness have to go

hand in hand with changes in technical and management

capacities.

The last few years have been marked by a paradigm

shift in perceptions and discourse, and a corresponding

but slow change towards action.

Being proactive – a paradigm shift

The move from a reactive and relief-centred approach to

a more holistic and integrated approach will mean

nothing less than a sea change in how people think. It

places emphasis on the proactive phase of disaster risk

management. The primary goal becomes conserving

developmental gains and minimizing the loss of life,

livelihood and property.

Capacity development is the basis for a proactive strat-

egy that starts with building awareness about risks and

prevention; disseminating knowledge about threats,

potential dangers and their mitigation, and fostering

appropriate skills and expertise of key persons in educa-

tion, health, science, administration, the corporate sector

and civil society to plan, implement, respond to and deal

with disasters. Capacity development is a contribution

that has a long-term effect, and it has become one aspect

of policy concepts. India’s ‘National Disaster Management

Guidelines – Chemical Disasters’ from April 2007 state

that ‘there is a need to strengthen the existing training

institutions and set up additional training institutes in

fire, risk assessment, certification, safety audit and emer-

gency planning.’

Translated into more practical terms, this policy setting

has consequences for the core elements of capacity devel-

opment: building awareness, strengthening cooperation

and integration among actors/institutions, building up

knowledge and skills to perform, reinforcing the technical

Acceptance: awareness campaign together with a community-based organization

Image: F. Bemmerlein-Lux