Session 7

Recovery and Resilience

Today’s objectives

To enhance awareness of what community recovery from a pandemic will entail.

To understand how lessons learned during a pandemic can be used to address the underlying causes of food shortages and poverty.

Two Stages of Recovery

1. Re-establish a sense of security

Reduce fear, support grieving, reopen businesses, re-establish joy

2. Link relief to recovery

Reassess vulnerability - strengthen and sustain relief activities.

Get life and commerce back to normal.

Improve on pre-disaster living conditions - longer-term work that addresses the underlying causes of food shortages and poverty

Step 1. Reduce fear and re-establish a sense of security

Immediately after the pandemic has run its course.

Huge psychological impact = great need for psychosocial support

Identify and deal with worries that people have about future outbreaks and the ability to get life back to normal

Grief and recovery counseling

Step 1. Reduce fear and re-establish a sense of security

Share accurate information, dispel rumors, provide links to other sources of information and support.

Share information about normal responses to fear, uncertainty, trauma, and disasters.

Candlelight vigils, memorials Reopen public places Reintroduce joy to the community

Stage 2: Link Relief to Recovery

Reassess vulnerability

Ongoing assessments of levels of vulnerability by population and geographic region will be needed to select recovery beneficiaries.

Determine who is still vulnerable and will have trouble getting back on their feet.

Determine the coping strategies that people have used in response to the pandemic

Strengthen and sustain relief activities

Make sure short-term income and basic necessities are available

Supplemental feeding centers (community kitchens, soup kitchens) for at-risk populations

Vouchers, stamps, or other alternative currency for food purchase in local markets.

Encourage home gardens = improved diet diversity and immediate access to low-cost foods.

Health, hygiene, and nutrition education. Food for Work - or Cash-for-work programs . Cash-for-training

Get life and commerce back to normal

Link short-term relief efforts to longer-term strategies for building resources and skills that will reduce the impact of future disasters

Strengthen and sustain relief activities

Sample Recovery Activities

Strengthen local markets, supply chains, transport of goods Offer skills training for immediate (self) employment; match job

seekers to employment opportunities Facilitate small loans for business activities in all sectors Support the formation of cooperatives Strengthen health service delivery systems; ensure equitable

access to vaccines and other medications Revitalize small-scale agriculture and animal husbandry Strengthen natural resource management and agricultural

extension services Advocate for national government solutions that help poor people

manage risks Support citizen awareness campaigns and communication and

media efforts

Work toward future resilience

A. Identify what can be done with local resources and manpower to get livelihood activities functioning again

B. Identify areas that need external help. For example, farming could begin again with local

resources but re-establishing market linkages may need external support.

C. Seek external resources and support if they are needed

Thank You