Africafé : Advancing Natural Disaster Management Strategies in Africa

March 21, 2024

The profound impacts of natural disasters on lives, economies, and communities underscore the need for comprehensive understanding and proactive measures. These disasters disrupt livelihoods, displace populations, and strain resources, exacerbating vulnerabilities in both urban and rural areas. The economic toll is significant, hindering development efforts and causing long-term setbacks due to infrastructural damage. Drawing lessons from other countries like Brazil, Africa recognizes the imperative of building resilience in communities to mitigate the impacts of natural disasters. Implementing measures such as early warning systems, robust infrastructure, and community-based disaster preparedness initiatives can bolster resilience and minimize casualties. Moreover, investing in education and capacity-building programs further empowers communities to respond effectively to crises. By learning from Brazil's experiences, African nations are poised to strengthen their natural disaster management strategies and enhance their ability to withstand and recover from such adversities.

Speakers
Eduardo Amaral Haddad
Senior Fellow
Eduardo A. Haddad is Full Professor at the Department of Economics at the University of São Paulo, Brazil, where he directs the Regional and Urban Economics Lab (NEREUS). He is additionally a Affiliate Professor at the Faculty of Governance, Economic and Social Sciences of the Mohammed VI University. He also holds a position as Affiliate Research Professor at the Regional Economics Applications Laboratory – REAL – at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA. He is a Senior Fellow at the Policy Center for the New South, Rabat, Morocco. Prof. Haddad has published widely in professional journals on regional and interregional input-output analysis, computable general equilibrium modeling, and various aspects of regional economic development in developing countries; he ...
Ahmed Ouhnini
Economist, Policy Center for the New South
Ahmed Ouhnini is an Economist at the Policy Center for the New South. His research area covers agricultural economics, human and social development. Previously, he has worked as a researcher at the Paris School of Economics (PSE) and has also a record of working in consulting services in Morocco. Ahmed holds an engineering Diploma in Agriculture and Rural Development from the National School of Agriculture of Meknes and a Master’s Degree in Law, Economics and Management from the Paris 1 Pantheon Sorbonne Institute of Development. ...

RELATED CONTENT

  • Authors
    Dominique Guillo
    November 30, 2020
    The data presented in this Policy Brief focus on the Moroccan population’s perception of the Covid-19 pandemic and the public policies designed to curb it. These data are derived from a survey conducted by the Policy Center for the New South based on 3 waves of public attitude surveys carried out by IPSOS Morocco in June, July and September 2020. This survey is part of the « Attitudes Towards Covid-19 » research program, conducted with a consortium of international academic partners ...
  • November 27, 2020
    The Policy Center for the New South is hosting a joint webinar in partnership with the ASEANplus Platform of the Ghent University under the theme “Europe, Africa and Asia: What Partnership Dynamics after 2021?”. The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the effects of globalization and defi...
  • Authors
    Sabine Cessou
    November 27, 2020
    « Une terre promise » (Fayard), livre événement de Barack Obama, couvre sa campagne et les trois premières années de sa présidence. L’Egypte est le pays d’Afrique dont il parle le plus – et pas seulement à cause du Printemps arabe. L’Afrique occupe à peine 40 pages sur les 840 que comptent les mémoires de Barack Obama. La crise financière internationale, la loi Obama Care et le retrait des troupes d’Irak et Afghanistan ont retenu l’attention du président fraîchement élu. ...
  • November 27, 2020
    The Policy Center for the New South is hosting a joint webinar in partnership with the ASEANplus Platform of the Ghent University under the theme “Europe, Africa and Asia: What Partnership Dynamics after 2021?”. The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the effects of globalization and defi...
  • Authors
    Souha Majidi
    November 26, 2020
    The Trump Administration “America First” policy changed U.S. foreign policy towards the African continent. Trump opposed trade agreements with several countries, considering them to be unfavorable to the U.S., given the nature of the African market. He shifted the U.S. concern in Africa from fighting against violent extremism and terrorism to a direct competition with other great powers—China and Russia—which had already extensively implemented African strategies. He endeavored to r ...
  • November 26, 2020
    Food security for all requires (i) sustained productivity growth and competitiveness, not only of agriculture but of the entire economy; (ii) a social safety net; and (iii) resilience in the face of periodic shocks. This is the central message of this review. Two popular concepts in food security for all are food self-sufficiency (FSS) and food sovereignty (FSY). While countries have pursued different policies to achieve FSS, the common element in their approaches is the misguided ...
  • Authors
    November 26, 2020
    The insurance sector is rapidly expanding in Africa as firms, households, and governments are increasingly becoming customers in life insurance, non-life insurance, and reinsurance markets. In 2019, Africa’s insurance premiums were valued at $68.15 billion 1 . The largest insurance markets can be found in South Africa, Kenya, Egypt, Nigeria, Algeria, Angola, and Tunisia, which together comprised 83% of all African premiums in 2019 2 . Africa’s insurance sector is often overlooked wi ...
  • Authors
    November 19, 2020
    In October 2014, Burkina Faso entered a new era when a social uprising resulted in the overthrow after 27 years of President Blaise Compaoré. The uprising was triggered by Compaoré’s attempt to amend the constitution so he could run for another term. In late 2015, Roch Marc Christian Kaboré was elected and sworn as a new president with high hopes for a new Burkina Faso. Corruption, democratic reforms, poverty, and economic development dominated President Kaboré’s inauguration speech ...