Prioritizing Disaster Risk Reduction in Community Development: A Challenge for Social Workers in Botswana

Abstract

Communities in Africa suffer considerable losses from windstorms
and floods every rainy season. These disasters are complicated by
other hazards such as heavy rains, soil erosion, wars, corruption,
and climate change which make developing nations vulnerable.
Windstorms such as hurricanes, cyclones, and dust-storms cause
mass damage in southern African countries. This paper explores
how social workers mainstream disaster risk reduction in community development in the Southern African country of Botswana seeks to provide a cushion against the adverse effects of windstorms. The main contention is that communities in Botswana are not adequately prepared to prevent, respond to, and recover from, the effects of windstorms. Evidence from the authors' work in the area of disasters in Botswana as well as existing literature is used to support the argument. As one of the measures to tackle the menace, local authorities will need training in windstorm risk reduction and developing building codes for the construction of storm resistant houses.