Weathering Storms : Understanding the Impact of Natural Disasters on the Poor in Central America

Ishizawa, Oscar A. ; Miranda, Juan Jose

World Bank, Washington, DC

关键词: SANITATION;    IMPACTS OF HURRICANE;    POVERTY POVERTY;    RISKS;    HOUSEHOLD SURVEY;   

DOI  :  10.1596/1813-9450-7692
RP-ID  :  WPS7692

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: World Bank Open Knowledge Repository

【 摘 要 】

In the past decades, natural disastershave caused substantial human and economic losses in CentralAmerica, with strong adverse impacts on gross domesticproduct per capita, income, and poverty reduction. Thisstudy provides a regional perspective on the impact ofhurricane windstorms on socioeconomic measures in the shortterm. Apart from modeling the socioeconomic impact at themacro and micro levels, the study incorporates andjuxtaposes data from a hurricane windstorm modelcategorizing three hurricane damage indexes, which lends ahigher level of detail, nuance, and therefore accuracy andcomprehensiveness to the study. One standard deviation inthe intensity of a hurricane windstorm leads to a decreasein growth of total per capita gross domestic product ofbetween 0.9 and 1.6 percent, and a decrease in total incomeand labor income by 3 percent, which in turn increasesmoderate and extreme poverty by 1.5 percentage points. Theseresults demonstrate the causal relationship betweenhurricane windstorm impacts and poverty in Central America,producing regional evidence that could improve targeting ofdisaster risk management policies toward those most impactedand thus whose needs are greatest.