Cultivating Community-Based Disaster Risk Management in Tonga – Tonga

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In February 2018, Tropical Cyclone Gita brought devastating winds of more than 140 miles per hour and extensive flooding to the Kingdom of Tonga, causing widespread damage to the Pacific island nation. According to the Government of Tonga (GoT), the storm affected 75,000 people, or approximately 70 percent of Tonga’s population, with the storm damaging or destroying nearly 2,250 houses and resulting in $156 million in damage to crops and infrastructure on the worst-affected islands of ‘Eua and Tongatapu.

The Kingdom of Tonga is vulnerable to hydrometeorological hazards, including cyclones, floods, storm surges, and tsunamis. Recognizing its vulnerability, and acknowledging how quickly a powerful cyclone like Gita could overwhelm local disaster response capacity, USAID Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (USAID/OFDA) partner Act for Peace has been working to increase disaster preparedness in the country since 2010 through local partner the Tonga National Council of Churches and in coordination with GoT emergency management officials.

Prior to the storm, Act for Peace implemented the Tonga Community Disaster Risk Management program (TCDRM), which includes communityled disaster…

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