What does it take to mainstream disaster risk management in key sectors?

The guide argues that effective mainstreaming of disaster risk management (DRM) requires a supportive policy environment, strong leadership, accurate risk knowledge, consistent financing, and innovation. It highlights that DRM is often compartmentalised from climate change and sectoral development, leading to 'risk-blind' decisions. The document proposes overcoming these barriers through strategic inter-ministerial coordination, the use of cost-benefit analyses to prove the economic value of risk-informed planning, and the engagement of the private sector. It emphasizes that mainstreaming is a political process that requires inclusive, multi-stakeholder platforms and visionary leadership to navigate vested interests and institutional inertia.

• Mainstreaming DRM is hindered by the compartmentalisation of disaster risk management, climate change planning, and sectoral development into separate policy streams, often managed by different ministries.
• Short political cycles often lead decision-makers to prioritise investments with immediate results over long-term solutions for climate change adaptation and DRM.
• Risk assessments are frequently disjointed because current disaster risks and future climate change risks are evaluated through separate processes by different agencies.
• There is a significant gap in DRM financing, with a study of 40 of the world's poorest and most disaster-affected countries showing that only 1% (US$3.7 billion) of total official development assistance was spent on DRM.
• The private sector is responsible for 70% to 85% of worldwide investment in new buildings, industry, and critical infrastructure, yet many governments fail to actively engage businesses in DRM.
• Innovation in DRM is often obstructed by political economy issues, where new processes upset entrenched and powerful interests.
• Effective leadership is critical for mainstreaming, but is often constrained by a lack of institutionalised knowledge, meaning progress can be lost when individual 'champions' leave their positions.
• Demonstrating short-term economic benefits and cost savings from risk-informed investments can successfully shift policy toward long-term DRM planning, as seen in Da Nang, Vietnam.

APA

Bahadur, A., Kirbyshire, A., Khan, D., & Bhatt, M. (2014). What does it take to mainstream disaster risk management in key sectors? Climate and Development Knowledge Network. https://cdkn.org/sites/default/files/files/CDKN_Guide_Mainstreaming_dr_management_final_rev_web-res_0.pdf

Chicago

Bahadur, Aditya, Amy Kirbyshire, Dina Khan, and Mihir Bhatt. What does it take to mainstream disaster risk management in key sectors? Climate and Development Knowledge Network, 2014. https://cdkn.org/sites/default/files/files/CDKN_Guide_Mainstreaming_dr_management_final_rev_web-res_0.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Bahadur |first1=Aditya |last2=Kirbyshire |first2=Amy |last3=Khan |first3=Dina |last4=Bhatt |first4=Mihir |title=What does it take to mainstream disaster risk management in key sectors? |publisher=Climate and Development Knowledge Network |date=April 2014 |url=https://cdkn.org/sites/default/files/files/CDKN_Guide_Mainstreaming_dr_management_final_rev_web-res_0.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{bahadur2014what, author = {Bahadur, Aditya and Kirbyshire, Amy and Khan, Dina and Bhatt, Mihir}, title = {{What does it take to mainstream disaster risk management in key sectors?}}, institution = {Climate and Development Knowledge Network}, year = {2014}, month = apr, url = {https://cdkn.org/sites/default/files/files/CDKN_Guide_Mainstreaming_dr_management_final_rev_web-res_0.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }