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4 The Operational Environment and Institutional Impediments
Pages 109-125

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From page 109...
... This chapter recognizes and examines the organizational differences between the various actors, some of which are inherent in their predefined roles and some of which are affected by the scale and duration of the disaster or prevention scenario. Based on these observations, the chapter concludes with several recommendations designed to assist these varied institutions and organizations in linking their domains more efficiently to collect and use georeferenced population data in disaster response and development projects.
From page 110...
... There are many inherent dichotomies in how, when, where, and in what capacity organizations respond to disasters and humanitarian crises. First, fundamental differences exist between organizations that provide demographic data (which are usually aspatial)
From page 111...
... The provision of direct economic assistance for infrastructure, debt relief and restructuring, and assistance in reconstruction after disasters falls within the mandate of multilateral agencies such as the World Bank and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) , and bilateral actors such as the Overseas Development Institute (ODI)
From page 112...
... . Disaster and Humanitarian Crisis Response Agencies Response agencies have, at the core of their missions, the desire and ability to respond to disasters or humanitarian crises anywhere in the world.
From page 113...
... and include continuing challenges in finding and retaining trained staff, inadequate financial resources, and inexperience with both outsourcing and inter- or intragovernmental cooperation. All of these are amplified greatly by the traditional "boom-bust" cycle of census operational funding, which inhibits the development of permanent editable census databases and the retention of staff with census-taking experience.
From page 114...
... However, the decentralized management authority also adds to the complexity of disaster response capacity. An example from the World Bank (Box 4.1)
From page 115...
... Empowering National Statistical Offices Although the past few years have clearly indicated the limitations of GIS in humanitarian crises, dedicated financial resources for the development of GIS databases would help ensure the timely delivery of spatially referenced population data in an emergency (Kaiser et al., 2003)
From page 116...
... Lacking a sufficient level of support from national leaders, national statistical agencies often need either to recycle outdated maps from the previous census or to go about remapping the entire country on a tight schedule -- neither of which is an acceptable option from the standpoint of accurate and up-to-date information. Far better would be the creation of a continuously maintained georeferenced database of administrative boundaries, point and line features, and locations of housing units and other structures.
From page 117...
... Box 4.3 provides an overview of the structure and operations of the U.S. Census Bureau with particular focus on international operations in the context of population data acquisition, management, and training.
From page 118...
... In contrast to the domestic operations of the Census Bureau, the international programs in its Population Division are mainly externally funded by agencies such as USAID, U.S. military and intelligence agencies, and international organizations such as the United Nations.
From page 119...
... Census data is that the subnational data in the international collection are not disseminated. To acquire more finely resolved subnational population estimates, the Census Bureau assists Oak Ridge National Laboratory's LandScan Global by supplying coarse population estimates for its ambient population data.
From page 120...
... , inconsistent coding schemes made it difficult to link the digital maps with population census data, delaying the process of producing usable information by critical days and weeks. Producing credible data is critical to advocating for and mobilizing international support for relief and reconstruction.
From page 121...
... Government officials are also overburdened in the post-disaster phase with a steady stream of agencies demanding information on affected areas. The Role of the Military in Disaster Response The military has traditionally performed a vital role in disaster response, supplying the logistics and planning capacity to deal with largescale crises both inside and outside the United States.
From page 122...
... The rationale for the involvement of a civilian agency in this activity was that the U.S. Census Bureau housed demographic and geographic expertise not found elsewhere and provided the neutrality needed for detailed distribution of the population (U.S.
From page 123...
... Creating a continuously maintained georeferenced database of administrative boundaries, point and line features, and locations of housing units and other structures would assist in humanitarian response efforts, but undertaking this will require political will on the part of decision makers in the country and reallocation of resources as well. In its responses to humanitarian disasters worldwide, the U.S.
From page 124...
... RECOMMENDATIONS Based on the preceding discussion, the committee makes the following recommendations: • National and international disaster response and humanitarian agen cies and organizations should elevate the importance of demographic and specifically spatial demographic training for staff members. Further, census staff and others working in NSOs throughout the world should be encouraged to undertake such training in order to promote the analysis and use of subnational data before, during, and after emergency response situations.
From page 125...
... Military to Plan for Larger Role in Disaster Relief. Available online at http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Military_to_plan_for_larger_Role_In_Disaster_ Relief.html [accessed March 14, 2007]


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