Compounding crises: combinations of vulnerabilities, risks and hazards in West Africa

The new ALNAP strategy considers “the very real possibility that crises are likely to
become both more widespread, complex and characterised by catastrophic
combinations of different kinds of human vulnerabilities”. This paper has been
produced as a background briefing paper on these issues for the 22nd ALNAP
Biannual meeting, which is being held in Senegal on December 4th-6th 2007. It is
intended as a short introduction to put the theme of the meeting into context , and
help to familiarise participants with some of the key issues that will be discussed. It
therefore takes a preliminary look at the idea of ‘compounding crisis’, to provide
definitions and look at some of the key concepts in more depth. It provides
examples to help clarify and deepen understanding of the theme, and suggests a
preliminary set of implications which we hope will inform and stimulate
discussions at the meeting.