DISASTER RISK REDUCTION AND RESPONSE IN CONFLICT-AFFECTED CONTEXTS : How armed conflict affects disaster risk reduction (DRR) and disaster response, and what explains within conflict variations?

Abstract: This thesis w attempts to contribute to the identified gap in the disaster-conflict literature and posits the following research question: How does armed conflict affect DRR and disaster response, and what explains within conflict variations? Past research revealed that there is significant variation in types of rebel groups, which has significant consequences for disaster management. More nuanced approaches are needed in studying wartime political orders to scrutinize the dynamics of armed conflict and to assess the feasibility of DRR and relief interventions in different contexts. Studies suggest how militarily strong rebel organizations are less likely to inflict violence on civilians and are more likely to engage in wartime state-building; this thesis builds on that and examines how variations in wartime political orders, conditioned by the level of rebel territorial control, formal, informal institutions and relationships with the civilians and organizations affect the observed outcome, i.e. execution of disaster risk reduction and disaster relief programming. This theory is tested using the structured focused comparison method and takes an in depth look into two regions in Nepal during the 1996-2006 civil war across two distinct periods. Primary and secondary sources are used to collect and analyze data on the selected cases. Findings suggest that WPOs may  have a considerable impact on how DRR and relief are delivered during conflict; stronger rebel territorial control is positively correlated with DRR and relief, while lower levels of rebel territorial control were found to be  negatively correlated; these findings are  limited due to a number of data  constraints.