The Livelihood Assessment Toolkit - Analysing and responding to the impact of disasters on the livelihoods of people

Assessing the impact of disasters on the livelihoods of people and the capacity
and opportunities for recovery and increased resilience to future events is an
important part of the response to disasters, yet current assessment systems
are often weak, uncoordinated and are not strongly linked to livelihood
recovery interventions. In order to improve understanding of the impact
of disasters on livelihoods, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United
Nations (FAO) and the International Labour Organization (ILO) have jointly
developed the Livelihood Assessment Tool-kit (LAT). The LAT consists of three
main technical elements: Livelihood Baseline Assessment (which is undertaken
pre-disaster); Immediate Livelihood Impact Appraisal (undertaken immediately
after the disaster); and Detailed Livelihood Assessment (undertaken up to 90
days after the disaster).

In the process of development, the LAT has been tested, redefined and refined
in a number of countries including Pakistan (2005 Kashmir earthquake);
Indonesia (2006 volcanic eruption and earthquake in Yogjakarta); Philippines
(2006 Typhoon Reming); Bolivia (2007 flooding); and Pakistan again in 2008
(livelihood baseline work). This process of continual learning and improvement
continues, and so the current set of guidelines contained in these volumes
should be seen as one stage in the development of the approach.