UNDP Maps Maafaru for Better Disaster Preparedness

The UNDP Accelerator Lab has completed a key project on Maafaru island in Noonu Atoll to map local infrastructure and community assets at risk from extreme weather. This project helps address the Maldives’ vulnerability to rising sea levels and more frequent severe weather.

The Maldives is one of the world’s lowest-lying countries, facing serious threats from climate change, such as rising sea levels, extreme weather damage to shorelines, contaminated freshwater lenses, and harm to infrastructure, endangering tourism, fisheries, and farming.

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While the country has national disaster strategies, detailed local plans are often missing for its 200 inhabited islands. This lack of detailed data makes disaster management difficult and leaves communities unprepared.

The UNDP Accelerator Lab worked with Maafaru’s local council to address this issue and try a new mapping method.

According to a post the UNDP website, they involved 12 residents in creating a map of the island’s roads and buildings. Using digital tools like Mapillary and OpenStreetMap, as well as paper maps, the volunteers collected detailed data to create a Hazard, Vulnerabilities, and Capacities (HVCA) map.

This map shows risk areas and identifies resources like strong buildings that could serve as safe assembly points during emergencies.

Volunteers were recruited through social media and local networks, ensuring good participation from young people and women. In just two days, these residents gathered and confirmed data about their island, improving the accuracy of the information.

This participatory mapping has improved coordination between local institutions and communities, building trust and enhancing local disaster response capabilities. The collected data informs local disaster plans and can be used by national authorities to create more effective strategies.

By expanding this approach to other islands, the UNDP Accelerator Lab aims to make this method a standard part of government practice, ultimately improving disaster preparedness across the Maldives.