“What will we eat while waiting for the crops to grow?”

“What will we eat while waiting for the crops to grow?” is an Oxfam research report on effective early recovery for “off-the-radar communities” in selected countries in Asia and the Pacific. The research was conducted from March to November 2019. 
In this report five disaster risk reduction and early recovery interventions from the Philippines, Vanuatu, and Vietnam were assessed to identify which elements are likely to facilitate recovery from disasters. The research investigated “off-the-radar communities” which in this research are broadly defined as communities that are geographically or politically far from the centers of political power. 
The study is presented as five case studies that attempt to give voice to community members’ own experiences and perceptions of disaster recovery where possible. 
The research highlights the importance of existing relationships between communities and other actors, and the key role of innovation—especially targeted microfinance —in early recovery. Local leadership in conceptualizing and implementing interventions was most apparent where there were outstanding local risk reduction champions; otherwise local organizations tended to co-create interventions with external agencies and lead implementation of response activities. Findings showed that projects generally consulted women, but the risk reduction outcomes for women are mixed, and women’s leadership was not consistently supported.