International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction 2026:  “Resilience Starts at Home: protecting agricultural livelihoods where risk is felt first”

Every year on 13 October, the world marks the International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction (IDDRR) to raise awareness of disaster risks and celebrate efforts to build safer, more resilient communities. This year’s theme, “Resilience Starts at Home”, recognizes that the home is where disasters are first experienced and where resilience is built every day. For rural families that depend on agriculture, the place called home extends to the fields, the pastures and the surrounding nature that provides a source of food, income and security. 

When drought dries up water sources, when floods destroy crops or when conflict forces families to flee, the impacts are felt first at household level. Building resilience therefore means enabling families and communities to anticipate risks, protect their livelihoods and recover more quickly from shocks and stresses. 

From Venezuela to Somalia and Afghanistan, building resilience starts with empowering families and communities to lead the way.

This is particularly important for agriculture, which bears a disproportionate share of disaster losses worldwide. Findings from a FAO study (2025) indicated that between 2007-2024 agricultural losses accounted for 23 percent of total disaster-related economic losses across all sectors, rising to nearly 80 percent for drought-related losses (FAO, 2025). These losses directly affect food security, incomes and the livelihoods of millions of rural households.  

Building resilience from the ground up 

At the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), disaster risk reduction is a corporate priority. FAO supports people affected by disasters to restore their agricultural livelihoods, while also enhancing their capacities to reduce future disaster risks. FAO addresses the underlying drivers of vulnerability while supporting preparedness, anticipatory action and emergency response when crises occur. 

Central to this work is localization. Lasting resilience cannot be built from the top down. Communities are often the first to identify risks, respond to shocks and implement solutions that make sense in their local context. Strengthening household capacities, supporting community leadership and combining local knowledge with technical expertise are therefore fundamental to reducing disaster risk. 

Resilience starts at home: lessons from the field 

Across the world, FAO is supporting households and communities to reduce risks and strengthen resilience where it matters most. 

The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela: strengthening the resilience of Indigenous communities 

In the Guajira Peninsula of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Wayuu Indigenous communities face recurrent drought, erratic rainfall and land degradation. FAO's support focused on helping households strengthen their access to water, food production and natural resources. More than 500 households received agricultural and water management kits, including rooftop rainwater harvesting systems and drip irrigation technologies. Community water reservoirs and solar- and wind-powered wells were rehabilitated, while training in climate-smart agricultural practices and community risk mapping strengthened local capacities. Under a related anticipatory drought response project implemented with local authorities and non-governmental organizations, Wayuu women took the lead in managing water systems, combining ancestral knowledge with techniques such as waste reuse, seed preservation and water harvesting. 

These interventions combined practical solutions with Indigenous knowledge and leadership, enabling communities to develop locally adapted approaches to managing climate risks and sustaining livelihoods. As one Wayuu community member explained, “Access to water has transformed our lives. I no longer have to spend hours each day walking with my young children to fetch water and crossing a dangerous highway, because I could not afford to buy from water trucks. With our rehabilitated well and solar-powered pump, we now have enough water, and I can start growing onions, squash and coriander to support my family”. 

Somalia: rebuilding livelihoods after displacement 

For many displaced families, resilience means creating a new home and rebuilding livelihoods after losing everything. In Somalia’s Dollow district, recurrent droughts, floods and conflict have driven thousands of people from their homes. Working with local elders and landowners, FAO helped secure access to land for nearly 4 000 displaced households, 78 percent of which were female-headed. These households were able to establish kitchen gardens that now provide both food and income, strengthening their resilience to future shocks and stresses.  

Access to land, drought-tolerant seeds, agricultural tools and training enabled these families to move beyond emergency assistance and begin rebuilding their livelihoods. A beneficiary described the difference the project made: “Our livelihoods have improved significantly. We used to plant seeds randomly, leading to poor-quality crops. Now we use improved planting techniques and harvest better-quality produce that has increased our income”. The initiative strengthened resilience by placing displaced households, local communities and women at the centre of decision-making.  

Afghanistan: communities leading recovery 

Following devastating floods in Afghanistan in 2024, FAO implemented a World Bank-funded programme that reached more than 315 000 affected households. Through cash-for-work activities, communities constructed 8.4 million water trenches and 9 000 small dams designed to reduce future flood impacts and improve water management.  

Local communities designed and implemented many of the solutions themselves, ensuring they addressed local needs and priorities. As Elder Mohammadi from Raysan village noted, “We designed these solutions ourselves. When agriculture became viable again, our youth came home. This gave us hope”. The project strengthened flood protection,  agricultural production and local capacities.  

Local leadership is the foundation of resilience 

At FAO, strengthening resilience begins by supporting households and communities to anticipate, withstand and recover from shocks and stresses.  

The evidence underscores the value of these investments. FAO's analyses show that the benefits of farm-level disaster risk reduction practices are, on average, 2.2 times those of previously used practices under hazard conditions. Studies on anticipatory action also demonstrate significant returns, generating up to USD 7 in avoided losses and additional benefits for every USD 1 invested (FAO, 2025). These investments help families safeguard their livelihoods before disasters strike and strengthen the resilience of agrifood systems.  

The experiences from the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Somalia and Afghanistan demonstrate a common lesson: resilience starts at home, but it does not stop there. This year’s IDDRR theme is therefore a reminder that resilience is built through the combined efforts of households, communities, governments and partners.  

Ultimately, resilience starts at home, but its impact extends far beyond the household. When families are empowered to manage risk and supported by the services and investments they need to thrive, communities become stronger and agrifood systems are better able to withstand, adapt to and recover from future shocks and crises. By empowering households, supporting locally led action and strengthening resilient agrifood systems, we can reduce risk, protect livelihoods and build a more food-secure future for all.