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How people are recovering their livelihoods 12 months after the tsunami

The tsunami of 26 December 2004 devastated the lives and livelihoods of millions of people. Many were living in poverty before the tsunami; others were suddenly plunged into poverty. The affected communities are determined to rebuild their lives, and the generosity of donors has meant that aid agencies have been able to help them. Many have resumed work, and local economies are beginning to recover. Sustained support over the coming years will give people the opportunity to get out of poverty for good.

Download the full paper in PDF format (148K)

Also available in Francais (169K pdf), Espanol (182K pdf)

Summary

A year has passed since the tsunami, and it is time to remember the many who lost their lives. It is also time to assess the effectiveness of the relief and reconstruction operations so far.
This report is intended to outline the work that has been undertaken to restore and improve the livelihoods of tsunami-affected people. It recognises the poverty in which many people were living before the tsunami. It describes how the tsunami destroyed what meagre livelihoods these people had, and how it threatened to plunge millions more into poverty.

Men and women affected by the tsunami are determined to be economically self-sufficient. The extraordinary generosity of people and governments around the world has allowed agencies, including Oxfam, to begin helping people and communities to recover their livelihoods. People are beginning to go back to work and there are clear signs that local economies are beginning to function.

The International Labour Organisation (ILO) estimates that the rapid aid and support received after the disaster is likely to result in 50–60 per cent of workers being able to earn a living again by the end of 2005. Moreover, economists believe that 70 per cent of those dragged into poverty by the tsunami — 1.4 million people — will be out of poverty by 2007. The drive to restore livelihoods has perhaps progressed more than some other areas of the tsunami response, such as building permanent shelters.

However, Oxfam believes that it is not sufficient that people simply return to the poverty in which they were living in previously. We are committed to helping people affected by the tsunami to create sustainable, improved livelihoods, as well as to preventing more people becoming trapped in poverty. This ‘reconstruction plus’ will require continued input and effort over many years.