Contribution of the Post-Disaster Needs Assessment (PDNA) and the Implementation of the Recovery Strategy through the Disaster Recovery Framework (DRF): Lessons Learned from the 14 August 2021 Earthquake in Haiti's Southern Peninsula
This case study documents the lessons learned and contributions of the post disaster needs assessment and disaster recovery framework toward implementing recovery from the August 2021 earthquake in Haiti's Southern Peninsula.
Following the 7.2-magnitude earthquake that devastated the three departments of the Southern Peninsula of the Republic of Haiti on 14 August 2021, a High-Level International Event (hereinafter the Conference) was organized on 16 February 2022 in Port-au-Prince. The Conference was informed by the PDNA and the DRF known in Haiti as the “Integrated Recovery Plan for the Southern Peninsula” (PRIPS). The development of the PDNA and the DRF was coordinated by the Prime Minister’s Office and the Ministry of Planning and External Cooperation with the support of ministerial entities and the Tripartite Partnership2 made up of the United Nations (UN), European Union (EU) and World Bank (WB), together with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). The process also benefited from technical and/ or financial support from Switzerland and USAID. At the Conference, the international community pledged US$600 million to support the recovery of the Southern Peninsula of Haiti.
The lessons learned process undertaken by the UNDP Regional Office in Panama included the following main objectives:
- Identify the relevance and added value of the PDNA/DRF for the implementation of post-earthquake recovery;
- Assess the potential of the PDNA/DRF methodology to address multidimensional and simultaneous crises (natural disaster, health emergency, security crisis, etc.);
- Identify best practices and constraints encountered during the earthquake impact assessment and recovery planning process;
- Provide recommendations for process improvement.
The lessons learned document is organized into three main sections. The first section summarizes the main stages of implementation of the PDNA/ DRF within the prevailing national context at that time. The second section is dedicated to lessons learned and successively examines:
- National ownership of the process;
- The commitment of the Tripartite Partnership;
- The adaptation of the PDNA/DRF methodology to the national context;
- The financial assessment of recovery needs;
- The PDNA/DRF as a methodology to address multidimensional and simultaneous crises;
- Institutional arrangements.
The third section, in conclusion, presents the best practices identified, as well as the recommendations for the future.
This publication is available in English and in French.