Review of Information Needs after Natural Disaster - Key Findings

Following a sudden onset disaster there is typically limited comprehensive information on what the impact of the disaster has been, including the scale and severity. At the same time the humanitarian community and donors are making key decisions on how to respond. Current practice suggests that these decisions are made based on assumptions formed through prior experience and lesson learned from similar past disasters that have taken place and have been responded to.

To better understand the information needs of emergency decision makers in the immediate aftermath of a disaster, ACAPS has collected and analysed information needs from different organizations to improve information about needs being made available to emergency decision makers within the first days of a crisis.