Vulnerability Assessment

An essential part of flood risk assessments is the estimation of damages inflicted by floods. However, little attention has been put on this aspect in recent years, although studies have shown that the damage estimation is one of the most uncertain parts in a flood risk assessment. The main problem is either, that appropriate damage models do not exist at all, or that they are not validated.  In Vietnam, there is currently no specific damage model available. This lack is to be alleviated within WISDOM.

Explorative research in Can Tho (one of the three case study areas of the WISDOM project) has produced insights on characteristics of urban and peri-urban vulnerabilities. Through the combination of different methods such as focus group discussions with experts, household interviews and the analysis of secondary (statistical) data, knowledge on vulnerability patterns and governance processes could be gained. Through this, research questions and methodological approaches could be fine-tuned for the next research phases.