Cape Verde has been developing climate risk and vulnerability mapping and the National Disaster Observatory. These topics will be covered in this issue, so it is important to understand the definitions of climate risk and vulnerability and disaster risk in order to make the best possible use of the information that is now becoming available.

According to the Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC):

• RISK is the probability of consequences occurring where something of value is at stake and where the outcome is uncertain, recognizing the diversity of values. Risk is often presented as the probability of dangerous events or trends occurring multiplied by the impacts if these events occur or these trends exist. Risk results from the interaction of vulnerability, exposure and hazard

• HAZARD is the potential occurrence of a physical event or the effect of a natural or human-induced trend or physical impacts that could cause loss of life, injury or other health impacts, as well as loss and damage to property, infrastructure, livelihoods, service provision, ecosystems and environmental resources. In this report, the term hazard usually refers to physical events or the effect of climate-related trends or their physical impacts.

• EXPOSURE: The presence of people, livelihoods, species or ecosystems, environmental functions, services and resources, infrastructure or economic, social or cultural assets in locations and settings that could be adversely affected.

• VULNERABILITY: is the propensity or predisposition to be negatively affected. Vulnerability encompasses a variety of concepts and elements, including sensitivity or susceptibility to damage or lack of capacity to cope or adapt.

Based on the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, the definition of a DISASTER is a serious disturbance in the functioning of a community or society, on any scale, due to hazardous events that interact with conditions of exposure, vulnerability and capacity, leading to one or more of the following: human, material, economic and environmental losses and impacts.

Disaster Risk Reduction¹ aims to prevent new disasters and reduce the risks of existing ones and manage residual risk, which contributes to strengthening resilience and therefore to achieving sustainable development.

Disaster risk reduction is the policy objective of disaster risk management, and its goals and objectives are defined in disaster risk reduction strategies and plans.

Disaster risk reduction strategies and policies define goals and objectives at different time scales and with concrete targets, indicators and deadlines. In line with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, they should aim to prevent the creation of disaster risks, reduce existing risks and strengthen economic, social, health and environmental resilience.

An agreed global disaster risk reduction policy is set out in the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, approved by the United Nations, adopted in March 2015, whose expected outcome over the next 15 years is: “The substantial reduction of disaster risk and losses in lives, livelihoods and health and in the economic, physical, social, cultural and environmental assets of people, businesses, communities and countries”.

Cape Verde has its National Strategy for Disaster Risk Reduction which “promotes the development of an enabling environment and a guiding framework for the paradigm shift from disaster management to disaster risk management. This strategic policy framework marks a paradigm shift anchored in the mitigation of underlying risk factors, in particular to reduce exposure and vulnerability and build resilience. (…) This strategy affirms the government’s commitment to integrating disaster risk reduction and adaptation to climate change in a coherent way into national, sectoral and local development plans and policies, taking the form of integration into instruments such as the Strategic Plan for Sustainable Development (PEDS); fiscal instruments, frameworks and public investment systems; strategic policies, sectoral plans and programmes; and decentralization frameworks and local development programmes.”

These themes are explored in depth in the Climate Action NOW podcast episode Climate Risk Reduction.

With the recent availability of the National Disaster Observatory Portal and in June of the Detailed Climate Risk and Vulnerability Map in Cape Verde’s Spatial Data Infrastructure, Cape Verde is more resilient.

Author

Inês Mourão
Programa Ação Climática