Application of the disaster management cycle and climate change: Studying flood disasters in South Africa
The devastating floods in the Global South have been attributed to climate change. Furthermore, governmental agencies have been unable to effectively apply the Disaster Management Cycle (DMC) before, during and after disasters. This paper addresses this gap by analysing the application of the DMC in...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2023-01-01
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| Series: | Social Sciences and Humanities Open |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590291123002620 |
| _version_ | 1827397022846550016 |
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| author | Bethuel Sibongiseni Ngcamu |
| author_facet | Bethuel Sibongiseni Ngcamu |
| author_sort | Bethuel Sibongiseni Ngcamu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The devastating floods in the Global South have been attributed to climate change. Furthermore, governmental agencies have been unable to effectively apply the Disaster Management Cycle (DMC) before, during and after disasters. This paper addresses this gap by analysing the application of the DMC in preparation for, and in response to, flood disasters in two South African coastal provinces (namely, the Eastern Cape [EC] and KwaZulu-Natal [KZN]). The paper also assesses the association between the devastating flood disasters of April 2022 and climate change. In order to gather data for this paper, face-to-face interviews were conducted with 12 stakeholders (including governmental officials, academics, researchers, and officials of non-profit organisations [NPOs]). A thematic analysis was then conducted to categorise and code the collected data. Patterns, trends, and themes that emerged from the data resulted in findings that revealed that Government failed to fully and effectively applied the DMC before, during, and in the aftermath of the 2022 flood disasters. The findings also revealed that Government had failed to incorporate climate change in the DMC and respond proactively to floods. The respondents rejected the climate change rhetoric of various stakeholders, however, and instead continue to regard a cut-off low as the cause of the April 2022 floods. These respondents conceded, however, that climate change and other factors may have contributed to the disaster. Since neither a DMC nor climate change in the Global South have previously been investigated, this paper significantly contributes to knowledge on climate change in South Africa. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T19:01:11Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c551b303a9b14e75b766a04aba85c66e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2590-2911 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T19:01:11Z |
| publishDate | 2023-01-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Social Sciences and Humanities Open |
| spelling | doaj.art-c551b303a9b14e75b766a04aba85c66e2023-12-28T05:19:22ZengElsevierSocial Sciences and Humanities Open2590-29112023-01-0181100657Application of the disaster management cycle and climate change: Studying flood disasters in South AfricaBethuel Sibongiseni Ngcamu0University of South Africa, South AfricaThe devastating floods in the Global South have been attributed to climate change. Furthermore, governmental agencies have been unable to effectively apply the Disaster Management Cycle (DMC) before, during and after disasters. This paper addresses this gap by analysing the application of the DMC in preparation for, and in response to, flood disasters in two South African coastal provinces (namely, the Eastern Cape [EC] and KwaZulu-Natal [KZN]). The paper also assesses the association between the devastating flood disasters of April 2022 and climate change. In order to gather data for this paper, face-to-face interviews were conducted with 12 stakeholders (including governmental officials, academics, researchers, and officials of non-profit organisations [NPOs]). A thematic analysis was then conducted to categorise and code the collected data. Patterns, trends, and themes that emerged from the data resulted in findings that revealed that Government failed to fully and effectively applied the DMC before, during, and in the aftermath of the 2022 flood disasters. The findings also revealed that Government had failed to incorporate climate change in the DMC and respond proactively to floods. The respondents rejected the climate change rhetoric of various stakeholders, however, and instead continue to regard a cut-off low as the cause of the April 2022 floods. These respondents conceded, however, that climate change and other factors may have contributed to the disaster. Since neither a DMC nor climate change in the Global South have previously been investigated, this paper significantly contributes to knowledge on climate change in South Africa.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590291123002620Climate changeDisaster management cycleDisaster preparednessFlood disastersInfrastructurePoverty |
| spellingShingle | Bethuel Sibongiseni Ngcamu Application of the disaster management cycle and climate change: Studying flood disasters in South Africa Social Sciences and Humanities Open Climate change Disaster management cycle Disaster preparedness Flood disasters Infrastructure Poverty |
| title | Application of the disaster management cycle and climate change: Studying flood disasters in South Africa |
| title_full | Application of the disaster management cycle and climate change: Studying flood disasters in South Africa |
| title_fullStr | Application of the disaster management cycle and climate change: Studying flood disasters in South Africa |
| title_full_unstemmed | Application of the disaster management cycle and climate change: Studying flood disasters in South Africa |
| title_short | Application of the disaster management cycle and climate change: Studying flood disasters in South Africa |
| title_sort | application of the disaster management cycle and climate change studying flood disasters in south africa |
| topic | Climate change Disaster management cycle Disaster preparedness Flood disasters Infrastructure Poverty |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590291123002620 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT bethuelsibongiseningcamu applicationofthedisastermanagementcycleandclimatechangestudyingflooddisastersinsouthafrica |