A Primary Assessment of Society-Based Earthquake Disaster Mitigation in Kabul City, Afghanistan

Abstract

A questionnaire-based survey was carried out in the 13th district of Kabul, the capital city of Afghanistan. For this purpose, 10 high schools, both private and public, were selected randomly. A total of 324 participants responded to the questions in the questionnaire. From the total respondents, 127 (39.2%) were female and 197 (60.8%) male; all were in the 15 to 25 age range. Most of the students (75%) had experienced an earthquake, but their perceptions and knowledge about earthquake mitigation were not good as over 50% did not know what to do during an earthquake. Regarding the current situation, 64% responded that disaster education had not been included in their school curricula. The wide participation and strong interest of the students in this survey are expected to foster further research and investigation, as the majority of them (70%) were in a position to transfer their knowledge about earthquake disaster mitigation to their families.

Based on the survey findings, despite the contribution of students who had already experienced disaster education outside of Afghanistan, students’ disaster mitigation knowledge was undeniably poor. There is a clear need to establish and plan for the disaster prevention education system in Afghanistan. There is a lack of understanding regarding effective behaviors, attitudes, and knowledge. This problem was probably caused by the absence of disaster education, teaching materials, and expert staff. Therefore, it is highly recommended to integrate disaster prevention education into school curricula, reduce the earthquake risk by sharing disaster information through students’ parent council meetings at schools, and improve public awareness in order to create a society that is resilient to earthquakes.