These Guidelines are part of ongoing efforts by the African Development Bank (AfDB), the Commission of the African Union (AU), the Secretariat of the NEPAD (New Partnership for Africa's Development) and the Africa Office of the UN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UN/ISDR Africa) to integrate disaster risk reduction in development strategies and programmes in Africa. This is in recognition of the fact that : disaster risk interventions are development activities; anddevelopment strategies and programmes need to be managed to avoid or minimize the negative impacts of natural hazards on people's vulnerability. Globally, the evolution of disaster as a development concern has progressed in three stages: the first involved viewing hazards as disasters; the second emphasized the physical protection of assets from hazards; the third and contemporary stage emphasizes strengthening people's capacity to absorb and recover from hazards - by reducing the negative effects of development practices on vulnerability.
Disaster management practice in Africa is mainly at the first and second stages, but the continent is now moving towards disaster risk reduction through stronger integration with development. This movement entails a shift from managing disasters to reducing disaster risks.
The present Guidelines aim to help make disaster risk reduction and assessment a routine part of development planning and resource allocation.