| Author | Shubham Pathak |
| Call Number | AIT Diss no.DM-18-04 |
| Note | A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Disaster Preparedness, Mitigation and Management |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Abstract | This research follows the 2011 devastating floods in Thailand which impacts are still not fully understood. Despite many assessments, debates, decisions and policy adjustments made by the economic stakeholders such as Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), banks and the government, the best mitigation options are still open to researchers. In light of established professional standards in disaster recovery mechanism and coping techniques, this study aimed at understanding the flood risk for small businesses in Pathumthani and to examine risk mitigation and recovery strategies applied by Thai business owners and managers in flood prone areas. This study was conducted on a sample of around two hundred small and medium enterprises of various categories in the Pathumthani province, through an analysis of secondary data on production and financial annual results against the trends of flood events, with consequences in local and global markets. An analysis of the corporate cultnre of risk management included a questionnaire survey applied to sampled managers as well as key informant interviews and focus group discussion. This was done in the backdrop of an extensive literature review and comparative study of existing international recovery strategies adopted in developed and emerging economies presenting similarities with Thailand. The study was therefore attempt to present how robust Business Continuity Planning and recovery strategies could be used to strengthen the resilience of SMEs, in order to speed up recovery in case of floods and increase the effectiveness of government interventions to support risk transfers. The findings included the economic, production and social damages arising from the floods and depending upon the inadequate decision making at the managerial level of the SMEs and the government. The losses escalated due to the absence of flood preparedness and mitigation measures at both SME and government level. Major factors contributing to the huge damages and losses of2011 floods included inaccurate perception of actual flood risk, absence of risk transfer tools such as insurance, non-existence of coordination between various stakeholders including SME management, government bodies and Non-Government Organisation (NGOs), inadequate disaster management planning and business continuity planning at the SME level, adoption of inadequate flood prevention measures by both the SMEs and the government bodies which were inadequate in te1ms of the high magnitude of 2011 floods. The study provides for bridging the gap between successful disaster management, business continuity planning and faster recovery from disasters. The SMEs require to adopt flood management and risk transfer tools in its routine management policies and plans. This would strengthen the sustainability and resilience of the enterprise from future disaster events. The government needs to implement and assess the disaster management policies and plans in already existing disaster management framework. Inclusion of other stakeholders including NGOs and the community would strengthen the disaster resilience among SME and society as a whole. |
| Year | 2018 |
| Type | Dissertation |
| School | School of Environment, Resources, and Development (SERD) + School of Engineering and Technology (SET) |
| Department | Department of Development and Sustainability (DDS) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Disaster Preparedness, Mitigation and Management (DM) |
| Chairperson(s) | Ahmad, Mokbul Morshed; |
| Examination Committee(s) | Kusakabe, Kyoko;Pal, Indrajit;Paul, Bimal Kanti; |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | AIT Fellowship; |
| Degree | Thesis (Ph.D.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2018 |