Community-based Action Review of “Drought Relief 2000” in Gujarat, India: Some Lessons for Asia

 

Young girls in Gujarat spend their days collecting water from shallow wells, instead of attending school (Banaskantha, 2002. Gujarat. DMI Photo)

Droughts are not new to Gujarat, India, or to most of Asia. The year 2000 was marked by slowly spreading drought in major parts of India, Pakistan and Afghanistan. In 2002, again several countries in South Asia are facing drought. In India, eight large states have already declared drought and many more will join the list by the end of the year. In Gujarat, in 2000 the early rains came in time but the remaining monsoon was dry, leading to a severe drought. This year, the rains were delayed for two months, and late showers have made only cosmetic changes in water and food security in the area. Drought is about to be declared in Gujarat. In the past ten years, Gujarat has faced six droughts, two of them severe. Drought relief, mainly comprising food for work programs to build public assets and cash doles to pregnant women and old, destitute people, is a common response.

In March 2000, the Disaster Mitigation Institute (DMI), a community-based action planning and action research team in Ahmedabad, was invited by Oxfam (India) Trust to review the “drought relief 2000” in Gujarat. The two-month, multi-level, multi-method review covering the four most critical districts was conducted in selected villages using qualitative and quantitative methods. The outcomes were discussed with both the local communities and government officials. Five useful results for upcoming drought in Asia are presented here.

First, the extent a victim is protected can be determined by two factors: when a drought is declared, and how drought relief is withdrawn. Delayed declaration of drought almost doubles the human and economic costs of relief inputs. Early and abrupt withdrawal of drought relief only prolongs the impact of drought on human nutrition, agricultural production and cattle breeding from two to six seasons. Governments and public authorities must take timely steps in declaring drought and careful thought before closing down relief camps.

Water harvesting pond, built by local community with DMI is well suited to collect early or late rain water. (Banaskantha, 2000. Gujarat. DMI Photo)

Second, the overlap of efforts and gaps in distributing relief can be greatly reduced by a community in any relief operation. That is, the greater the community management of relief, the better targeting, lower leakages and more comprehensive coverage. Local management of relief by communities offers tremendous potential for effective relief response. Donors who fund or finance relief efforts in Asia this year must ensure the centrality of communities in decision-making.

Third, most drought assessments focus on rural, farm-based, water and food sector-focused impacts of drought. But increasingly, drought adversely affects local livelihoods in trade, commerce, small business and small town economic activities. Assessments by consultants and pilot teams of international NGOs must include the above activities in assessments for more connected drought relief.

Fourth, financing or funding relief must protect the livelihoods of poor people, develop and maintain region-wide fodder security for cattle, and build water harvesting campaigns mooted by local communities. Specialization of relief on one of the three is not effective.

Fifth, poor households, especially in drought-visited areas, routinely plan for and manage the uncertainties associated with drought-induced crises. Ensure that relief interventions support their plans and do not undermine them. Two critical dimensions of household coping strategies must receive particular attention: the significance of women’s work and the continued centrality of non-market resources, relationships and institutions in the struggle for survival.

To many, the above five lessons may seem well known, developed and argued for over a decade in Asia, but their actual use in field operations is still rare to find. Not that private or public relief agencies have other intentions, but the fact remains that experiences of relief efforts disappear with the completion of the crisis and each new drought relief effort “rediscovers” effective ways of mitigating drought in Asia.

Mihir R Bhatt is the director of the Disaster Mitigation Institute in Ahmedabad, India. He can be contacted at dmi@icenet.net