Resilience, development and disaster risk reduction

This paper strives to explain the relationship between disaster risk reduction (DRR), development programming and a focus on building resilience, with a specific example from the Irrawaddy Delta in Myanmar. It argues that DRR work can serve as a first step, an entry point, to building the resilience of poor and/or vulnerable communities. It also states that, when combined with a deep understanding of the context, systems, vulnerabilities and power dynamics affecting the governance of those communities, the thoughtful integration of good DRR work with relief and development programming enables us to focus on, and more importantly, practice new ways of working in partnership, all aimed at building resilience for the most vulnerable.