Name: Ocbina, Hannah Isabela S. Yr.

/Sec: 12 – STEM

Post Task 2

How different is the exposure to flood hazards of people from cities in developed
countries and people who live in cities in less-developed countries? Explain your
answer in not more than 200 words. Cite examples for each explanation.

Natural disasters frequently occur across the world, affecting both developed and
developing countries. Some countries, however, are more vulnerable than others. Most
of the lives lost or impacted by natural disasters are in developing countries. Poor
governance, external restrictions, hunger and foreign debt force farmers to burn wood
for fuel and participate in unsustainable farming techniques that accelerate
deforestation and, as a result, deforestation processes. Poverty leads to migration to
urban areas, typically in dangerous areas, with catastrophic consequences (e.g.,
landslides and debris flows in urban areas). Between 1991 and 2005, almost 90% of
disaster-related deaths and 98% of disaster-affected people were in developing
countries. Future adjustments to the rising effects of weather-related natural disasters
due to global climate change would also be more expensive in these countries.
Developing countries are more vulnerable to natural disasters because people live in
areas at high risk of natural disasters (e.g., dangerous urban areas), infrastructure is
poorly built and can easily be destroyed in the event of a disaster, countries are not
equipped with early warning systems, and they have few assets and a limited social
security network to help them cope with disasters.