Disability inclusiveness of early warning system: a study on flood-prone areas of Bangladesh

Purpose Persons with disabilities face the impacts of disasters differently. Early warning systems can be one of the powerful tools to reduce the vulnerabilities of persons with disabilities and mitigate the impacts of disasters. The main objective of this study was to assess the disability inclusiveness of the current early warning system (EWS) in flood-prone areas of Bangladesh. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative method was focused on getting in-depth information. Persons with disabilities participated in focus group discussions (FGDs) and shared the inclusiveness and gaps of the current EWS. Through extensive literature review, a checklist was developed to conduct the FGDs. QDA Miner 6.0.6 software was used for coding and analyzing the data. Findings Results indicated that, though persons with disabilities have proper risk knowledge, the current monitoring and warning service, dissemination and communication, and response capability are not fully inclusive. A significant gap in the EWS was found in response capability. Even if somehow persons with disabilities manage to receive a warning about a flood, they lack the capacity to respond to the warning. Research limitations/implications The study proposed that to make an EWS inclusive and effective, the concerned authorities should focus on all four parts of the EWS. Originality/value Studies related to disability and disaster management are not very common. Conducting a qualitative study provided the persons with disabilities the opportunity to share their perspectives. Future studies can focus on vulnerability and capacity assessment of persons with disabilities to identify areas requiring interventions to enhance resilience.