The Challenge of Urban Redevelopment in Disaster-affected Communities. Environment and Urbanization Asia. Vol 1

The Philippines is one of the most disaster-prone countries in the world due to its hazard-prone location and vulnerable population. If it is to avoid a repeat of the loss of lives and devastation in every disaster, it must plan and manage more effectively, the further growth of its towns and cities as well as the natural environment. This can be achieved through disaster risk reduction-oriented planning and management. This article presents the challenges and issues that need to be addressed in planning for high-risk, low-income areas in the Philippines, and presents as an example, a redevelopment planning project of the community of Barangay Rizal in Makati City. The discussion highlights the hazards, vulnerabilities, socio-economic and other critical considerations in the area, and presents possible actions to reduce the risk and improve the socio-economic condition of the project site. The uniqueness/value of this project is that it addresses the challenges of making an existing low-income built-up community disaster-resilient. The lessons from and the replication of this project are relevant not only to the Philippines towns/cities but also to similar low-income, high-density communities in other developing countries