From Relief to Resilience: Strengthening Disaster Preparedness for Health and Education Sectors

Abstract

The destruction caused by recent calamities shows one of the long-standing global failures: excessive dependence on short-term aid and insufficient investment in preparedness and strength. Health and education, both vital in a crisis, are particularly prone to disruption. The transition to proactive resilience instead of reactive relief is not only essential but also possible, as there is increasing evidence to support this notion.

Health systems are the first line of defense during emergencies. A 2025 study has developed a practical Emergency Preparedness and Health System Resilience Assessment Tool that allows governments to identify gaps and take resilience-building actions first.1 Conceptually, resilience is now more clearly defined: a recent analysis clarifies qualities, including absorptive, adaptive, and transformative capacities that collectively define the way systems withstand shocks.2 However, despite conceptual advances, operational issues remain.