Crisis Preparedness Gap Analysis (CPGA)

In an increasingly risky world where people face threats to their lives and livelihoods from extreme weather events, pandemics, conflicts, and violence, crisis preparedness is essential. Crisis preparedness ensures that people, business and governments can not only cope, but prosper. It’s about safeguarding a life’s savings, ensuring a girl’s education is not derailed. Governments are increasingly adopting proactive approaches to preparedness, aiming to protect national budgets as well as the lives and livelihoods of their citizens, from the impacts of crises. This involves planning ahead to prepare for the potential socio-economic impacts of crises, ensure predictable and timely access to resources, and mitigate long-term fiscal impacts. The World Bank is actively supporting these efforts with an expanded toolkit of crisis preparedness and response instruments.

The Crisis Preparedness Gap Analysis (CPGA) is part of this toolkit. It is a diagnostic tool that addresses fundamental questions regarding a country's ability to handle various shocks, spanning from natural disasters to pandemics and food crises. 

Helping countries better prepare for and manage crises requires action across sectors, and the CPGA looks at preparedness from different angles to paint a picture of what is and what isn’t working, pointing towards opportunities to invest and strengthen preparedness capacity with the Bank’s help. The framework asks critical questions: 

1. Who does what when preparing for and responding to a crisis? Establishing clear roles and responsibilities and ensuring that there is a strong legal and regulatory foundation for crisis preparedness can help ensure effectiveness.
2. Does the government have a good understanding of the key risks faced by the country, their likelihood and potential impacts? Does it have the capacity to issue forecast and warn people of looming risks? A good understanding of the risks a country faces and the ability to act upon that information with forecasts and early warnings are essential to acting early and saving lives.
3. What is the likely cost of a shock and how will it be paid for? Financial planning, setting resources aside and insurance products can help make sure that funding is available when needed and can reach those who need it the most.  
4. Are there enough staff, resources and equipment to deliver life-saving assistance and ensure continued delivery of essential services such as healthcare and education? Search and rescue efforts, food reserves, adequate critical services and infrastructure save lives.
5. The CPGA was developed to support implementation of the policy commitments related to crisis preparedness in IDA20 by bringing together the Bank’s knowledge on different elements of crisis preparedness in a comprehensive overview. It has been delivered in three countries, where it is contributing to inform the Bank’s engagement. Deliveries are ongoing in four countries and many more are in the pipeline. 

Supporting crisis preparedness in Nepal 

Like for many other IDA countries, crisis preparedness is a critical agenda for Nepal. The country is no stranger to devastating earthquakes, floods, landslides, and zoonotic diseases with epidemic potential pose a significant threat. To help identify opportunities to strengthen Nepal’s preparedness to a range of shocks, the Bank recently completed a CPGA, deploying a multi-sector team of experts from across the institution and working closely with key government stakeholders and development partners. The CPGA has helped bring together stakeholders across sectors critical for natural hazards, health, and food security to highlight priorities to help prepare for large crises that cut across sectors. As the Bank and the Government of Nepal set out to develop the new Country Partnership Framework, the CPGA points to priority areas so strengthen preparedness, including continued policy dialogue and investments to strengthen the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Agency (NDRRMA) in its role as coordinating agency for crisis preparedness across sectors, development of multi-hazard early warning systems and establishment of shock-responsive social protection systems.