Well-being losses from coastal hazards

This paper examines the range of well-being losses caused by climatic hazards in coastal regions of Asia and the Pacific and reviews approaches used to measure these losses for policy and practice. Drawing on targeted literature review and a Bangladesh case study, the authors identify nine domains affected: food security, water and sanitation, livelihoods and employment, unpaid work, mobility and displacement, health and psychosocial well-being, safety and gender-based violence, cultural and social well-being, and ecosystem loss. The study analyzes key measurement methods—including post-disaster needs assessments, household surveys, phone surveys, and nonmarket valuation—highlighting trade-offs in timeliness, disaggregation, and cost. The Coastal Well-Being Loss Measurement Framework (CWLMF) is developed to address gaps, using short, individual-level surveys and baseline data, tested via a pilot after Cyclone Remal in Bangladesh.

Key findings show that well-being losses are widespread but unevenly distributed across gender, age, and marginalized groups, often overlooked by conventional economic assessments. The Bangladesh pilot revealed that women faced greater challenges in healthcare access and unpaid domestic work, while men experienced more loss in paid employment and income. Recommendations include institutionalizing rapid, tailored survey tools within national systems, collecting timely and sex-disaggregated data, building data capacity, and improving inter-agency coordination to ensure gender-inclusive disaster response and equitable recovery. The authors emphasize the need for policy frameworks, like CWLMF, to systematically capture multidimensional losses beyond economic damage for resilient and inclusive recovery planning.