Terms of References Vertrag Nr. 81052141 (Bundesbeitrag ausserhalb Projekt)
Impact Study on the community based disaster risk management (CBDRM) program in Olancho, Honduras
Description of the intervention to be studied
The community based disaster risk management (CBDRM) program in Olancho, Honduras aims to strengthen disaster resilience among vulnerable communities. The program started working in 2005 after several emergency and relief operations, building up and rolling out CBDRM. Currently the program is implemented in 75 communities in 3 municipalities (Catacamas, Dulce Nombre de Culmí, and San Esteban). From 2018 onwards extension to other 25 communities of Dulce Nombre de Culmí and San Francisco de la Paz is planned. Total population directly covered will increase from 25’000 to 32’000 people. Indirect beneficiaries, through capacity building and increase of risk oriented decision making by local authorities, amount to 200’000 people.
Applying a community-based approach, community committees are organized, trained, equipped, brought to official recognition and linked to the national Disaster Management system. Main building blocks of the intervention are: disaster preparedness, prevention, mitigation and risk transfer. In disaster preparedness, usually the first step in CBDRM, communities and partners are trained and supported in contingency planning, early warning, search & rescue, evacuation, logistics, health services in emergency, shelter and relief operations.
Prevention and disaster risk mitigation builds on risk studies (including geological, hydrological, geomorphological and meteorological), complemented with traditional risk knowledge and coping mechanisms of the communities. Based on this combined knowledge, prevention and mitigation measures are defined, prioritized and established in a participatory way. Measures include “green” ecosystem based measures as well as “grey” infrastructure. All measures are relatively costly in terms of material costs and/or human resources.
Capacity building also takes place at the level of local authorities. They are trained and supported in organizational processes. The risk studies serve as an instrument for risk oriented decision making and are officially recognized and integrated in the municipal development and investment plans.
Aims of the study
The objective of this impact evaluation is to bring evidence to the questions, whether community-based disaster risk management contributes in a cost-effective way to strengthen community resilience in disaster prone areas.
The main question:
Did the Swiss Red Cross disaster risk management program have an impact in the communities in Olancho, Honduras?
In technical terms, is the program impact different from zero?
Specific Research questions:
- Is there a difference in the resilience level of communities intervened compared to those not intervened?
- To what extent do soil-bioengineering techniques allow for cost-effective mitigation of flooding/landslide events in the study area?
- To what extent are communities ready and prepared to appropriately respond to flooding/landslides events in the study area?
Implementation of the study
The study will be carried out by Schweizerisches Rotes Kreuz, Departement Internationale Zusammenarbeit, Werkstrasse 18, 3084 Wabern in cooperation with the study partner EPFL-CODEV [1], CM 2 - Station 10, CH-1015 Lausanne.
The study implementation bases on a detailed Impact Study proposal which will be refined in a participatory workshop in November/December 2017 with participation of the involved NGO, NADEL staff and representatives from SDC.
Responsibilities of the NGO
Besides the duties defined in the Contract the Schweizerisches Rotes Kreuz will carry out following activities:
- Conduct the impact evaluation on the basis of the attached study proposal
- Participate (compulsory) in
o a one-day workshop in November/December 2017, identifying critical points in the study designs, discuss possible solutions and refine the study accordingly; and
o a one-day workshop in January 2019, assessing the data and preliminary data analysis of the impact study and discuss ways to communicate the results and influence policy.
The workshops will be organized by ETH-NADEL and held in Zurich. SDC will cover the transportation cost (within Switzerland), lodging (if necessary) and food for the day.
- Revise the study proposal by End of Jan 2018
- Produce a short mid-term report before the 2nd workshop (max. 5 pages)
- Submit a final report (25 pages) and a policy brief (4 pages) to SDC and ETH-NADEL, upon finalization of the study until end of 2019.
These papers should highlight the results of the impact evaluation and describe how the results can and will be used by the NGO to i) review and change its own projects/interventions; ii) inform and influence similar projects/ interventions by other organizations; and iii) inform public policy makers and influence public policy design in the sector
- Make a presentation of the study at an event organized by ETH-NADEL and/or SDC in September/October 2019.
Roles and Duties of SDC and NADEL
- SDC will coordinate the whole process, give feedback on the mid-term and final reports, inform SDC staff on the impact award initiative and provide funding.
- ETH-NADEL will provide technical support and advice during two workshops, one in November 2017 and one in January 2019.
- ETH-NADEL will support internal coordination and approval of outputs.
- ETH-NADEL and/or SDC will arrange an event where the final presentation of the study will be held and support the dissemination of the impact study.
[1] Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), EPFL’s Cooperation and Development Center (CODEV)
