Disaster Management and Sustainable Development in Asia and the Pacific : Engendering the Strategies for the SDGs

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by United Nations General Assembly in September, 2015 seek to ensure that all nations and all people are included in achieving SDGs and no-one is left behind. Along with environmental issues mentioned in SDGs 6, 13, 14 and 15, the 2030 Agenda has provided an impetus and driving force for the enhancement of gender equality and women’s empowerment in SDG 5. The occurrence of Anthropocene/ natural disasters induced by climate change affects all dimensions of lives. While the Paris Agreement, 2016, aims to mitigate and adapt climate change ; the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, 2015-2030, adopted at the Third UN Word Conference, is the first major international instrument consisting of seven global targets and four priorities for action to substantially reduce disaster risks and “losses in lives, livelihoods and health and in the economic, physical, social, cultural and environmental assets of persons, businesses, communities and countries”.The disasters adversely affect the lives of both men and women, but women are specially hard-hit, during and after disasters, due to existing inequalities in the society. As per Gender Inequality Index , 2015, only 5 out of 53 ESCAP member States have achieved a low level of gender equality. The disasters are occurring more and more in the Asia and the Pacific, that is considered to be the most disaster-prone region in the world. In the light of this background, the paper will attempt to shed light on the feminist perspective of disaster management and sustainable development in Asia and Pacific. It will argue that gender mainstreaming is crucial for pre and post disaster management strategies